Word from the United States that manufacturers can now claim that foods containing barley reduce the risk of heart disease has significant implications in Canada, says the Canadian Wheat Board.
Spokesperson Heather Frayne said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s decision to authorize the use of a health claim for beta-glucan soluble fibre from barley in reducing coronary heart disease risk is a “very big deal.”
She said when oats was granted a similar opportunity, that crop gained a new lease on life.
“We’re hoping something similar happens” for barley,” Frayne said.
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Right now, little of the barley produced in Canada goes for human consumption.
Barley for human food comes out of that selected for malting. Frayne said in a good year total barley selected would be about 2.5 million tonnes.
Last year, only 1.6 to 1.7 million tonnes were selected.
Of that, 25,000 tonnes went to Japan and 15,000 tonnes were used domestically for pearling. Frayne said that’s less than four percent of the entire crop.
“The only way is up,” she said.
The FDA made its decision public in a rule published late last month. It looked at barley’s health benefits upon request from the National Barley Foods Council, which represents producers in Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon and Washington.
The FDA said sources of barley beta-glucan soluble fibre eligible for the health claim include whole grain, bran, flakes, grits, flour, meal, sieved meal and pearl barley.
To qualify for the claim, a food containing one or more of these sources must contain at least 0.75 grams of beta-
glucan fibre per serving.
“Barley has a distinct advantage over some other grains in that beta-glucan soluble fibre is found throughout the entire barley kernel,” the council’s executive administrator Mary Sullivan said in a News release
news.
Other grains contain the fibre in only the outer bran layer.
Barley’s versatility means it has wider commercial applications.
Frayne said the board already works with the Canadian International Grains Institute and contributes to the University of Alberta’s Agri-Food Discovery Place to develop products from barley.
Requests from food companies for a particular type of barley could be met through an identity preserved contract program, she said.
Other health benefits linked to barley include reductions in blood glucose levels, a reduced risk of colon cancer, overall bowel health, obesity control and reductions in Type 2 diabetes.
“The idea is to use this soluble barley fibre in a lot of foods that we already eat,” added Frayne. “There is lots of potential.”
