Cereals processing technology

132 Cereals processing technology
7.1.2 Changing trends
The Asian region is perhaps one of the fastest evolving areas of our global
village. This phenomenal force for change is driven by a number of factors
including a burgeoning population, increasing GDP with concomitant discretionary
personal income as well as an evolution in trade practices.
For decades the primary focus of wheat product research has been
disproportionately emphasizing bread. The increasingly prevalent economic
shift projected for Asia and the anticipated interest in food quality has led to a
reassessment of research and technological priorities. During the 1992–96
period the Asian-Pacific region imported 32.9 million tonnes (MT) of wheat
which is anticipated to rise to 34.5 MT by 2003 and 39.5 MT by 2008. 7 China, in
particular the northern region, uses wheat as a staple with consumption over
90 kg per capita which is higher than North American standards. 8 Thailand, the
world’s second largest rice exporter has seen annual wheat consumption rise by
7.5 percent, while Indonesia has been increasing at 7.8 percent annually (Table
7.1). 8 In South Korea wheat flour consumption has fluctuated between 32.1–
39.5 kg per capita of which, in 1995, 47.5 percent was used for making noodles.
In Japan wheat consumption, although still only half that of rice, has increased
tenfold to 32.8 kg per capita (1995) with an increase in the standard of living
being listed as the most significant reason for this growth. 8 Thailand has even
instituted the fortification of noodles with the essential micro-nutrients, iron
(5 mg), iodine (50 g)and vitamin A (267 g) per serving because of
deficiencies of these essentials in the basic Thai diet. 9
7.2 Noodle diversity
7.2.1 Influence of wheat characteristics
As with all food products the quality of the starting material dictates the
performance of the final end product. At present noodle manufacturers prefer
white seed coat wheat as the resulting flour and corresponding noodle does not
show the bran specks as obviously as a red seed coat wheat.
Table 7.1 Indonesia’s production of instant noodles 1993–1997
Year Production (tons) Packages (billions) Growth (%)
1993 168,516 2.25
1994 210,815 2.81 25.1
1995 472,290 6.30 124.0
1996 590,695 7.88 25.1
1997 649,765 8.66 10.0
1998* 600,000 8.00 7.0
*projected.
Courtesy of Indonesian Commercial Newsletter.