[K BIZ] Healthful Black Wheat Flour

South Korea's imports of wheat flour have been on the rise steadily in recent years.

In this regard, a local research team has developed a novel black wheat variety to promote the consumption of domestic wheat flour.

The Rural Development Administration (RDA) under the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has introduced the black wheat, called "Ariheuk" wheat.

The newly-developed dark wheat flour can be used to make not only bread but also a wide variety of processed food products such as cookies and instant noodles.

Imported flour products are more popular among consumers here as their average prices are half of those of domestic ones.

However, an increasing number of consumers use the locally-produced flour due to its healthfulness and savory taste.

The antioxidant effect of the new black wheat species is known to be about 10 times higher than that of the existing wheat varieties. In addition, the new wheat variety is richer in other nutrients including anthocyanins and vitamins.

[Kim Gyeong-Hoon, researcher, RDA]

"The colored wheat is able to catch the eye of consumers and help boost the nation’s health. We expect it will also help substitute wheat imports."

South Korea imports 2.1 million tons of wheat flour annually and is merely 1.8 percent self-sufficient in wheat production.

The RDA team expects the new black wheat variety to contribute to improving the national health, as well as substituting wheat imports and boosting farm household incomes.