Sept. 23, 2009, WINNIPEG – The creation of new food products containing barley will benefit Canadian consumers, producers and food processing companies, says a representative from the Canadian International Grains Institute (CIGI) in Winnipeg, Man.

Since April 2008 CIGI and the Food Processing Development Centre in Leduc, Alta., have been jointly involved in a project focused on the development of barley products in conjunction with food and ingredient companies.

Funded by the Advancing Canadian Agriculture and Agri-Food (ACAAF) Program, Alberta Barley Commission, and Canadian Wheat Board, the project aims to promote the use of Canadian food barley through research and new product development, says John Dean (pictured here), project manager for food barley at CIGI.

“We have been working with companies to include hull-less barley, mainly as a whole-grain flour ingredient, into established North American foods such as bread, cereal, pasta, baked goods and meat products to create new ones that will provide greater health benefits for consumers,” he says.

Dean says in North America barley has typically been used for beer and animal feed with limited use for food. Hull-less barley varieties have allowed for production of 100 per cent whole grain barley flour, which offers high levels of beta-glucan soluble fibre, shown to reduce serum cholesterol and risk for heart disease and to regulate blood sugar levels that can help prevent diabetes.

In December 2005, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a health claim allowing U.S. food manufacturers to state that foods containing barley may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.

“In Canada we don’t have an official health claim for barley, which limits what food companies can say, but as part of a continuing effort to obtain approval an application was made to the federal government earlier this year,” says Dean.

Part of the challenge of the project is communicating the benefits of food barley to the food industry and consumers, and generating interest in new products containing barley, he says. A new website launched in May 2009, www.canadianfoodbarley.ca, offers a range of information.

“The website is a useful resource on how hull-less barley is an excellent ingredient as a whole grain flour in various foods. It covers topics of interest to consumers, producers and food companies such as the nutritional benefits, production, statistics and provides other links.”

The suitability of whole-grain barley in a range of products has been evaluated and work is still being conducted on several hull-less varieties to compare their performance.

“Differences between waxy and regular starch types and different fibre levels between varieties are being assessed so we may use them appropriately in various food products,” Dean says. “This can mean new opportunities for growers of food barley as well as for food processors, in addition to offering products with health benefits to consumers.”

The project is due for completion this month (October 2009), but according to Dr. Linda Malcolmson, director of special crops at CIGI, plans are underway to renew funding for it.

For more information, contact Dean at 204-984-3139 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; or Malcolmson at 204-983-8584 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .