PRELIMINARY QUALITY ASSESMENT OF WHEAT GRAIN PRODUCED IN THE REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA

Abstract

Wheat is one of the most important cereal crops and stapple food at a global level, also at a national level in the Republic of North Macedonia. It is due to several factors, mainly the large growing area of the wheat crop, the adaptability to various environmental conditions and the nutritional characteristics of the wheat grain. Only the wheat flour is able to form a dough with unique properties essential for production of high-quality bakery products, especially bread, which are prevalent in the diet of our population. For years now, Macedonian farmers have had a serious challenge in terms of the production of good quality wheat grain. The milling companies in the country often warn about the unsatisfactory level of the domestic wheat quality, which requires the necessary import of a high-quality wheat grain (or flour) from abroad. This negatively affects not only the milling and bakery industries, but furthermore the entire wheat production, the national economy and the end consumers. Therefore, an imperative task of the research institutions in the fields of agriculture and food processing is to analyze the current state of technological quality of wheat grown in our country, to investigate risks and limiting factors and to recommend the solutions and best practices. This is the aim of this preliminary quality assessment of wheat grains produced in different regions of the country. Ten wheat grain samples grown in the season 2022/2023 were collected from different fields located in the selected regions in North Macedonia: Skopje region (Petrovec), Kocani region (Bosevica and Sredorek) and Pelagonija region (the subregion near Prilep: Mazuciste and Senokos and the subregion near Bitola: Kravari and Egri). Each sample is of particular wheat variety; some of the them are domestic registered varieties (Radika, Milenka, Belica and Osatka), while others are foreign wheat varieties (Alkantara, Falado, Gabrio and Pibrac). The following grain quality parameters were examined: test weight, sedimentation value, moisture content, protein content and gluten content. Furthermore, in each sample, the determination of besatz was done and bug wheat analysis was performed to identify possible infestation by Eurygaster spp. and Aelia spp. Some of the analyses were conducted in the laboratories of Food Institute in Novi Sad, Serbia (FINS), while the others in the laboratories of two milling companies (VitaMill and Kokrra e Artë.) in the vicinity of Tetovo, North Macedonia. The test weight of the studied samples ranged from 60.54 kg/hL to 72.91 kg/hL, with the moisture content within the limits from 10.57 % to 12.87%. Based on the results obtained for protein content, gluten content, sedimentation value, and total besatz, most of the samples are classified in class III or one class below, according to the conditions for grading wheat intended for flour production. The parameters used for identifying bug wheat infestation detected bug infestation in 6 of total 10 observed wheat samples, while in two samples a strong presumption of contamination was indicated. The hardest bug infestation was found in the samples of Belica variety originating from two different field plots in Kocani region (location called Sredorek). In general, the already documented bug damage in the majority of the analyzed grain samples, followed with the assessed weak technological quality require further detailed studies. Among all, the focus has to be put on the effects of the wheat bugs on the grain quality parameters. Here, the multi-disciplinary approach with mutual participation and close collaboration of agricultural experts of different profiles and food processing technologists is essential.