Flour Additives

Graham's picture
Graham
This discussion looks at issues surounding flour additives added to flour before the baker receives it.
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Danubian's picture
Danubian 2008 March 27

Our regular wheat flours in Australia have been adulterated by the addition of thiamin, etc. A bag of Bakers flour now has an ingredient list:

            • wheaten flour
            • thiamin

Roller milled Wholemeal flour:

  • wheaten flour
  • wheat germ
  • coarse bran
  • fine bran
  • gluten
  • thiamin
  • folic acid

 

This is really a subject for another thread; Tekky, can you move this and start another thread, or do I have to delete it?

 

 

jacklang 2008 March 27

One of the major artisan flour suppliers in the US.
Only their ordinary flour is enriched. Their organic flour is not enriched.
"

**Enrichment includes: Wheat flour enriched (niacin, reduced iron, thiamin, riboflavin, folic acid) and malted barley flour."

Danubian's picture
Danubian 2008 March 27
Organic flours in Australia are not 'enriched' either, it's only conventional stuff.

Jack, do you remember when flour in Britain was bromated?
jacklang 2008 March 27
All flour in the UK except wholemeal is required to be enriched

Calcium Carbonate 235-390mg/100g
Iron Minimum 1.65mg/100g
Thiamine 0.24mg/100g
Nicotinic acid 1.6mg/100g

These regulations go back to 1942 after studies suggested additional calcium was needed for healthy bone development.

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si1998/19980141.htm

These additives are not required to be declared on the labelling, and usually are not
http://www.dovesfarm.co.uk/organic/info-about-flour.htm

Bromate was prohibited in 1990 after some evidence of cancer risk

In Australia flour for bread (inlcuding organic and wholemeal)  MUST by law contain

(a) no less than 2 mg/kg and no more than 3 mg/kg of folic acid; and

(b) no less than 6.4 mg/kg of thiamin


http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/_srcfiles/Standard_2_1_1_Cereals_v97.pdf


I also note that from 27th September 2009 the salt in bread in New Zealand must be iodized salt.

Do you have exemption from these regulations for sourdough?



Danubian's picture
Danubian 2008 March 28
Organic flour is exempt see below:

[quote]

(4) Subclause 4(2) does not apply to wheat flour for making bread, which is

represented as organic.[/quote]


And further....

[quote]

(4) Subclause (3) does not apply to bread which is represented as organic.

[/quote]

Danubian's picture
Danubian 2008 April 4
Not as far as I'm aware; but if an 'organic' claim is made its deemed exempt. 

[quote=Jacklang]All flour in the UK except wholemeal is required to be enriched

Calcium Carbonate 235-390mg/100g
Iron Minimum 1.65mg/100g
Thiamine 0.24mg/100g
Nicotinic acid 1.6mg/100g

These regulations go back to 1942 after studies suggested additional calcium was needed for healthy bone development.[/quote]

Since 42?! I'm truely astounded. Although, during and after the war there were all sorts of things done that were deemed to be for the collective good.

Are millers testing their flour first and adding enrichments to come up to the required levels, or are they just dosing?  


  
karen h 2008 April 25

Hello, I've just become a member and wondered if you knew if brominated flour is used  here in australia, if it is where can I buy any bread or buy flour to make bread, I live in Cairns and have just become aware of bromine and its effect on people.
Thanks, Karen H 
Danubian's picture
Danubian 2008 April 26
[quote=karen h]
Hello, I've just become a member and wondered if you knew if brominated flour is used  here in australia, if it is where can I buy any bread or buy flour to make bread, I live in Cairns and have just become aware of bromine and its effect on people.
Thanks, Karen H [/quote]

Hi Karen, welcome to the board.

Flour in Australia has never been bromated in the past - fas far as I'm aware - and continues to be bromate free. In the recent past most  [url=http://www.fermex.com.au/products/products.php?cat=Bread+Improvers]bread improvers[/url] in Australia contained bromate. If I remeber correctly, bromated bread improver was discontinued in 1992. Bromate is no longer deemed an allowable 'additive' in bread.
Bushturkey's picture
Bushturkey 2008 April 26

Hi.

I got some Coopers brewing malt. The packet said "light dry malt" and the ingredients were "Malted barley". It dosesn't look roasted and the packet doesn't say it's roasted.

Is the same as diastatic malt?

Danubian's picture
Danubian 2008 May 6
because I don't use Coopers Brewers malt. Best for you to ask your supplier if it's "enzyme active" or "enzyme inactive". If it's active then it's diastatic.
Panevino 2008 May 7
I've used Coopers for beer making and I don't think it's active.  It's basically add water, yeast and hops type product to make beer.  It does taste great in bread though.  Like cornflakes.

Cheers,

Tony
Bushturkey's picture
Bushturkey 2008 May 7

Danubian, Panevino (is this from bread (Pane) & wine (vino)?Good combination anyway.

Thanks for the information. I got some organic barley grain. I'll have a go at sprouting it and making diastatic malt.
kochie 2008 September 27
I heard recently from a fairly reliable source that feathers are added to flour as a source of fibre. Does anyone know anything about this?
Oliver 2015 September 25

I have a liquid baby it is quiet sour but it doesn't come through in the bread. The loaves have a  great look and oven kick,      

The texture of the bread is good I don't know what to do??

can anyone please help me.

farinam's picture
farinam 2015 September 25

Hello Oliver,

It's all to do with acid concentration.  In your starter, time and other factors have allowed the acid concentration to build up to a high level and it is sour.  When you mix some starter with a whole heap more flour, water etc, the concentration of the acid is reduced and it doesn't taste nearly so sour.  As an aside, the term sourdough refers to the fact that the bread is leavened with a sour starter, not necessarily that the bread itself tastes sour.

Anyway, there are basically two ways to end up with more acid (and thus sourness) in the final loaf.  The first is to not dilute the acid in the starter so much and you do this by increasing the proportion and age of starter in your recipe.  The other is to give more time for the bacteria in the dough to produce their acidic waste products and as bacteria are slightly less affected by temperature than yeasts, retarding the dough by placing it in the fridge can push things in the right direction.  Obviously, a combination of both of these methods is likely to have a greater effect.

Also, be aware that some commercial bakeries use additives to make their 'sourdough' breads taste sour and this can give a false impression of what bread made using a sourdough leaven should taste like.

Good luck with your projects.

Farinam

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