Increasing biodiversity in sustainable cereal production through the introduction of the ancient wheat species Emmer - fundamental research on cultivation and processing characteristics for the domestic value chain
Funding | Ministry for Rural Areas and Consumer Protection Baden-Württemberg |
Duration | 2018 – 2021 |
Research partners |
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Industrial partners | Pflanzenzucht Oberlimpurg; Südwestdeutsche Saatzucht GmbH & Co KG; DIGeFa GmbH, Detmolder Institut für Getreide- und Fettanalytik |
Team | |
Emmer (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum) is the ancient wheat of the Neolithic Revolution, which was the main cereal of mankind for thousands of years. At present, attempts to re-cultivate it on a very small scale, especially in organic and sustainable conventional agriculture, have failed mainly due to a lack of knowledge about its cultivation and processing properties and, in particular, the choice of varieties suitable for today's agriculture. This is where our project comes in. Together with two plant breeding companies in Baden-Württemberg, Pflanzenzucht Oberlimpurg and Südwestdeutsche Saatzucht, a unique collection of around 150 old emmer varieties will be cultivated at three locations and agronomically tested for their suitability for domestic agriculture. Harvest samples from these trials will then be used as test samples for more detailed quality testing to identify potential processing products. All samples are tested at Hohenheim for protein content, sedimentation value, hectolitre weight and particle size. In addition, important rheological tests on the dough, such as the farinogram and extensogram, and a baking test are carried out on all samples. The quality data will provide important information for the successful processing of emmer into bakery products and alternative products. In addition, the large number of indirect parameters (such as protein content, sedimentation value, extensogram) will be used to try to establish a rapid method for evaluating the quality of emmer batches along the value chain using as few grains as possible in a short time. Finally, the data obtained will be used to develop key indicators for sustainable emmer breeding. | |