“These are long forgotten grains of ancient civilizations that people have rediscovered for their functional, nutritional qualities,” Colleen Zammer, director of product marketing for Bay State Milling, told FoodNavigator-USA. “We’re seeing more people marketing ancient grains with gluten-free products, and seeing more of ancient grains on common labels in general.”
From beer commercials to bird seed
Within the past few years, the notion of ancient grains has achieved widespread familiarity and acceptance among consumers as nutrient-dense and versatile whole grains, with quinoa leading the charge. (It’s safe to say that a mention in a national Bud Light commercial indicates that quinoa has achieved “household name” status.) Quinoa is one of the only complete protein grain sources, in addition to being a good source of key minerals and vitamins such as calcium, iron and folate.
Amaranth is nearly as rich in protein as quinoa (and an even richer source of calcium and iron), teff is an excellent source of calcium, buckwheat is high in potassium and millet high in fiber, but “you don’t see anybody asking for them,” Zammer said, noting that many still associate millet with bird seed, for example. “I don’t think any of these grains in and of themselves sell products. The ancient grain moniker is still driving consumption for those ingredients.”
Supply chains largely established
Quinoa is the most expensive, given the widespread demand for the grain as a high-quality protein source. Millet, amaranth and buckwheat tend to fall in same cost bucket and are comparatively more expensive than spelt, which is a wheat derivative.
Though there are variations among companies and sourcing, most ancient grains have established supply chains, save for teff, which is largely grown in Ethiopia and typically supplies the ethnic market for products like injera bread.
“We have established relationships for most of the grains with either foragers or countries of origin,” she said. “We work with them to provide funding to plant so we have a secure supply chain and know what’s going to be coming out of the ground.”
Short-term supply “hiccups” can occur when, for example, a big manufacturer launches a new bar containing quinoa. It might take six months to a year for supply to catch up, depending on growing cycles. But that’s where government-backed grants, like last year’s $1.6 million grant to Washington State University from the US Department of Agriculture to jumpstart quinoa production in the Pacific Northwest, can help create new sources of domestic production for ancient grains to satisfy growing demand.
There has been some backlash, with some claiming that ingredients are being stripped from their originating nations—in quinoa's case, South America— though the purported goal of such efforts is to these grains available for global not just local communities.
The importance of blending
Bay State Milling’s number-one piece of advice to manufacturers when it comes to ancient grains is to blend them, though it’s a balancing act between achieving the right nutrient levels (while keeping costs manageable) and how the product is positioned in the marketplace. “You want to use enough of the ingredient so it is contributing enough nutrition to have a reasonable spot on the label, and you have to balance how you position it in terms of its healthfulness versus the romantic nature of ancient grains.”
Blending also helps tone down the fairly strong individual flavor profiles of ancient grains, said Vanessa Klimczak, Bay State Milling’s product applications technologist.
Earthy, slightly bitter grains like amaranth, quinoa and buckwheat work well with savory, toasted flavors. Spelt has molasses notes that work in sweet applications; whereas teff has a mildly nutty, toasted flavor that works well in baked product applications. Millet has a mild corn flavor that Klimczak considers pretty neutral and would work in sweet or savory applications; while sorghum has a fairly neutral, green plant flavor that would work in baked products from breads and tortillas to cookies.
“Though it’s not gluten-free, rye offers a great base for a lot of these ancient grains,” Klimczak noted. “It’s fairly neutral, but tends to minimize off notes in these grains while maximizing their sweetness and toasted notes.”
Varying hydration levels
Moreover, each grain behaves slightly differently from a formulation perspective. Ancient grains can be grouped into buckets when it comes to water absorption, with sorghum, millet and teff on the low end of hydration, and quinoa and amaranth on the higher end. “Some of these grains that don’t have high water absorption are pretty easy drop-in grains,” Klimczak said, “as long as you have a good protein or gum source in your baked product formula.”
Buckwheat, a little higher on the water absorption spectrum, acquires a slightly stringy texture when hydrated. Amaranth and quinoa hold a little more water, though they don’t compare with wheat, barley or spelt when it comes to baking.
“Since these grains are not functional in terms of gluten, meaning no air cell development, gas retention, etc.,” Klimczak said. “You have to modify the formulas to account for that—whether by adding wheat gluten if it’s a gluten-containing product or some kind of gum or starch if it’s gluten-free."
She compares working with ancient grains to converting a white bread into any whole grain formula. “There is usually not one not simple sub-in or solution; it’s application dependent. You might have to add a gum system, change fermentation times or processing. For a lot of these grains, you need a supplemental system in order to have them function similarly to a white flour.”