Deep grain processing

Deep processing of grain is one of the promising areas in the grain industry. Every year, the demand for highly processed grain products is growing in both domestic and international markets. In the Russian Federation, this is due to the development of the livestock industry as part of import substitution, and abroad - with an increase in the consumption of biodegradable plastics based on lactic acid.

Deep processing of grain is the process of extracting chemical components that can be used as an independent product or subjected to further processing to produce completely new goods, with completely new consumer properties.

Grain processing processes consist of several stages, each of which can be carried out independently and ensure the production of a certain group of products.

Thus, the first stage is called preparatory and includes transportation followed by cleaning the grain from dirt and various types of impurities, after which the grain is subjected to hydrothermal treatment, which involves moistening, steaming, drying and cooling, and the first stage is completed by fractionation and sorting.
These operations are carried out in large volumes at granaries and transshipment elevators, as well as at processing plants and serve as the basis for further technological processing.

The second stage may differ in the level of complexity of operations, but all are based on crushing and grinding, in which processing is carried out by physical impact on the grain and grain mass, without disturbing the chemical composition of the feedstock. That is, during the processing process, the output product retains all the main characteristics characteristic of the grain from which it was obtained: the structure and shape of cells, the properties of proteins remain unchanged; sizes, shape and properties of starch grains, etc. Processing products at this stage are cereals, flour, snacks. This also includes the production of animal feed.

And the third stage, the final stage of grain processing, consists of extracting chemical ingredients such as: fats, B vitamins, various minerals in the form of compounds of iron, magnesium, cadmium. But there are grain components that are sold as an independent product, for example, starch and gluten, or are further processed to create new products.

The raw material for deep processing can be any grain: wheat, corn, barley, rye, oats, triticale, depending on year-round availability in a particular region, which is determined by climatic conditions and the situation in the agricultural industry.

For example, in the USA, corn is usually used as a grain raw material for such production; in Europe, wheat is most often used. The same culture is the most accessible material in Russia. When processing wheat, it is possible to obtain separate fractions of starch A, B, C and wheat gluten. And with further processing of starch isolated as a result of separation, it is possible to obtain a wide range of various derivatives and bioproducts, the scope of which is practically unlimited - from the food industry to the replacement of petrochemical products.

On the basis of glucose, organic acids can be produced from grain starch: citric acid, used in the manufacture of modern washing powders, and succinic acid, which serves as raw material for biopolymers. Lactic acid is also obtained from glucose, which is a suitable basis for the production of biodegradable plastic PLA and is used in the manufacture of coatings, food packaging, clothing, disposable tableware, and quickly decomposes into water and carbon dioxide.

Other glucose derivatives: amino acids, such as L-lysine, used in animal feed, threonine, tryptophan and arginine; enzymes - alpha-amylase, glucoamylase and others, as well as vitamins, nutritional supplements and biopolymers from lactic acid.

It is impossible not to note the importance of developing this industry to reduce imports of many products, because in the process of deep processing of grain one can obtain a wide range of products with high added value.

Vladimir Putin stated that

“It is necessary to increase the competitiveness of Russian agricultural products so that they enjoy growing demand both in the domestic market and abroad. This is the most important, key parameter around which we need to build our agricultural, industrial, scientific and educational policies, a system for supporting and stimulating exports, and developing deep processing of agricultural raw materials.”

The law signed by the president to regulate the production and circulation of bioethanol used as fuel opens up new opportunities for deep processing of grain. In turn, the Russian Ministry of Agriculture has prepared a draft resolution dated August 20, 2021 No. 577 “On approval of the list of advanced grain processing products,” whose producers can count on reimbursement of up to 20% of capital costs when creating or modernizing enterprises.