Baking Quality
Trial

Evaluating the impact of Legume derived N on Bread Performance

Project Funder: Aryzta, Allied Pinnacle
Project Lead: Ag Excellence Alliance
Project Duration: 2022-
Project Location: Temora Agricultural Innovation Centre, Tallimba

Background

Agronomic management has proven to have just as much influence on wheat milling and baking quality as genetics. The main agronomic management technique is nitrogen application rate and timing as this will affect the protein composition of the grain.

Protein concentration is an important parameter that must be met for wheat to meet a quality classification. For example, Australian Prime Hard (APH) must have a minimum of 13% protein. However, this can be a source of frustration for millers and bakers because even if APH wheat is 13% protein, there can still be a large variation in milling and baking quality. For a variety of wheat to have a APH classification it must go through rigorous baking quality testing so that it meets the specifications of different parameters such as viscosity and dough rheology. However, because agronomic management has such an effect on baking quality as well, a particular variety of wheat with an APH classification might still not be consistent milling and baking quality.

An observation that has been made by millers at Allied Pinnacle, is that wheat that has been grown on paddocks with a strong legume history have a better baking quality than wheat that comes from paddocks which only have N applied through synthetic fertiliser such as urea. Through a partnership between FarmLink, Allied Pinnacle and Aryzta, FarmLink have set up a project as a proof-of-concept trial to see if this idea can be proven through small plot research.