Welcome The Super Grains

NoOption5L@aol.com · medicine forum beginner Joined: 18 Aug 2005 Posts: 32

Just like diversity/variety is good in your diet, diversity/variety in
your grain consumption is also good.

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Amid the aisles of spaghetti and canned peas, cereals and breads made
with mysterious-sounding grains like amaranth and quinoa are sprouting
up at major supermarkets.

Wheat is still king of this country's whole grains, but the
appearance of such alternatives indicates consumers are beginning to
expand a niche market once relegated to the obscure corners of health
food stores.

"People are realizing there's a benefit to eating a diversity of
grains - and these grains have some incredible nutritional
properties," said Carole Fenster, an author of numerous cookbooks
that incorporate wheat-free grains.

New federal guidelines recommending three servings of whole grains a
day have put a spotlight on wheat, but exposure to barley, brown rice
and other options has also grown, said Alice Lichtenstein, chair of the
nutrition committee at the American Heart Association.

According to the marketing information company ACNielsen, sales of
products with whole grain claims on their packages for the year ending
April 22 increased 9.5 percent from the previous year.

Wheat free grains skyrocket: NuWorld Amaranth, one of the country's
main buyers of amaranth, reported a 300 percent increase in sales in
the past three years. Bob's Red Mill, which sells alternative
wheat-free grains, saw a 25 percent increase in sales in the past year,
with quinoa driving the bulk of the growth.

Amaranth, grown for millennia by the Aztecs, has twice as much iron as
wheat and is higher in protein and fiber. Quinoa, an ancient Andean
crop, has less fiber but more protein and iron than wheat.

It may take some time for the unfamiliar grains to find broad
acceptance. The American palate is still adjusting to whole wheat, and
amaranth's distinct, slightly nutty taste could take some getting
used to.

Gluten-caused celiac disease: One reason for the fledgling demand is a
growing awareness of celiac disease, which is triggered by gluten, the
protein found in wheat. Symptoms range from severe cramping to chronic
fatigue and even organ disorders. The condition is believed to affect
about 2 million Americans, with others sensitive to the protein.

There is also a growing crossover market of health-conscious shoppers
in search of the most nutritious grains, said Diane Walters,
spokeswoman for NuWorld.

ConAgra Mills is working with farmers to expand the supply of
sustagrain, a type of barley with a 30 percent fiber content, said Don
Brown, vice president of business development at the company.

While products made entirely of amaranth and quinoa may not hit the
mainstream anytime soon, the demand for such grains as ingredients will
likely get a boost as multigrain products proliferate, said Robert
Myers, executive director of the Thomas Jefferson Agricultural
Institute, a research center in Columbus, Mo.

"Once they get past corn, wheat and oats, they'll eventually get
around to picking up grains like amaranth," he said.

A limited supply: Alternative grains also benefit from the popularity
of organic goods, Fenster said - Whole Foods even has a line of
bakery goods devoted to gluten-free diets.

"As people go into those stores, they can't help but notice those
products," she said.

Supply of some alternative grains is still limited, however. Estimates
of U.S. farmland devoted to amaranth, for example, range from 1,000
acres to 3,000 acres - compared with 50 million acres for wheat,
according to the Thomas Jefferson Institute.

But the supply of white wheat in the country was also limited until
Sara Lee recently launched its white wheat bread, said Cynthia
Harriman, director of food and nutrition at the Whole Grains Council.
To ensure adequate supply, ConAgra began contracting with farmers about
five years before the product launch.

The same thing could happen for other grains that are easy and
inexpensive to grow, Myers said.
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Patrick

Just Ed · medicine forum Guru Wannabe Joined: 04 Jun 2005 Posts: 120

NoOption5L@aol.com wrote:
<SNIP copyrighted Associated Press story>

NoOption5L@aol.com · medicine forum beginner Joined: 18 Aug 2005 Posts: 32

just ed wrote:

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