World Grain - June 2006 - 67

FEATURE: HISTORY OF MILLING TECHNOLOGY PART III

ing for dispersing of material, resulted in a sterile product.
tempering the grain to provide a more uniform and optimized
From this discovery, the Entoleter infestation destroyer was state for milling. The quest for better cleaning methods and
derived and became rapidly accepted as a simple, hazard-free preparation of the grain has run in parallel to improvements in
solution to a formerly intrinsic problem of insect-derived con- milling itself in order to enhance the overall process.
tamination in flour mills.
Recently, there has been renewed interest in intensive scourAt this time, milling engineers found that the higher grinding ing, peeling and debranning to remove discrete bran layers as
pressures, as enabled by pneumatic conveying, created endo- techniques have become available.
sperm flakes that were difficult to sieve. Simon experimented
Even today, raw wheat can contain as much as 4% extraneous
with the Entoleter device and found it to be an excellent disrup- material that can be removed by one or more of the following
tor for reducing the flakes to flour particle size without altering principles:
the flour's characteristics. This resulted in the development of
* Size: Flat bed or rotary sieving to remove oversized or unthe Entoleter Milling System in the 1960s, which proved par- dersized particles;
ticularly helpful for the milling and baking industries in Britain,
* Terminal Velocity: Aspiration in upward air currents to rewhere "sandwich-type" sliced white bread has long been an im- move chaff, dust, and other light particles;
portant sector of the market.
* Specific Gravity: "Floating" of wheat off dense impurities
Higher grinding pressures with smooth rolls could be used to by water or air;
damage the starch cells, which increased the water retention of
* Natural peculiarity: Magnetic or metal detection of ferrous
the dough during the subsequent mechanized baking process.
and nonferrous metals;
In the 1960s, Dr. Eric A. Farrand of Ranks Hovis McDougall
* Shape: Separation by width or length by use of indents or
devised a method to determine starch damage and an associated slots in discs or cylinders;
formula to enable optimization of the grinding roll settings for
* Color: Reflected light in the visible and non-visible spectra
flour production for the newly introduced Chorlywood Bread can be detected by electronic camera devices.
Process (CBP).
The CBP, developed by the Flour Milling & Baking Re- TEMPERING
search Association (FMBRA) and introduced in 1962, reduced
Some of the most interesting applications of these principles
the proving time required and thus accelerated the baking process by input of
History Books
substantial energy at the mixing stage.
When Britain joined the EEC (now E.U.)
For those seeking a greater depth and understanding of the history of milling
in 1974, the use of CBP with flour milled
technology,
here's a list of recommended books and publications for further readby the Entoleter milling system enabled
ing:
sandwich-type bread to be made using
* "The Millers: A Story of Technological Endeavor and Industrial Success,"
domestic wheat. Previously, it used highGlyn Jones, 2001
protein Canadian types, but they were no
* "Science and Civilization in China, Volume 4, Physics and Physical
longer economically feasible to mill due
Technology Part II, Mechanical Engineering," Joseph Needham with colto the high levies applied by the EEC to
laboration of Wang Ling, 1965
third-country wheat.
* "Durum Chemistry and Technology," Giuseppe Fabriani and Claudia
Meanwhile, North American millers,
Lintas, 1988
with their access to higher protein wheat,
* "Up to Date Bread Making," W.J. Fance and B.H.Wragg
could achieve very high specific through* " Development of Grain Milling Machines," J.H. Scott, 1972
puts on roller mills with fine corruga* "Four Hundred Years of the Roller Frame," Dr. Otto Moog, translated from
tions.
German, Die Muhle, 1953
* "Flour Manufacture," Friedrich Kick, translated from German by H.H.P.
CLEANING
Powles, 1888
Milled products were soon found to be
* "Flour Milling," Peter A. Kozmin, translated from Russian, 1917
* "Modern Flour Milling," William R. Voller, 1889
more palatable if the grain was cleaned
* "Flour Milling," J.F. Lockwood, 1945, 1960
of husks, stones, sand, seeds and other
* "Modern Rice Milling Technology," Toshihiko Satake, 1990
contaminant impurities. It also reduced
* "Wheat Flour Milling," Eliesner Posner and Arthur Hibbs 1997, 2005
wear and tear on the handling and mill* "Henry Simon of Manchester - in Search of a Grandfather," Brian
ing equipment. As efficiency of yield and
Simon 1997
quality became important, there also was
an increased emphasis on conditioning or
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