Elaine Sopiwnyk

• Master of Science
• Vice President at Cereals Canada

Background and Objectives Milling practices, otherwise refined for specific uses in cereal‐based foods, have not been thoroughly developed for pulses. This study investigates whether scouring and moisture conditioning pretreatments on yellow peas and green lentils can enhance hull removal, and in turn, whether changes in hull removal alter in vitro...

Driven by the food industry’s need for balanced and versatile flour ingredients, the shift towards replacing starch-rich cereal flour with protein-rich pulse alternatives is gaining popularity among millers. This trend aligns well with the increasing consumer interest in nutritional value, product quality, and environmentally sustainable protein al...

With the growing global population, the need for food is expected to grow tremendously in the next few decades. One of the key tools to address such growing food demand is minimizing grain losses and optimizing food processing operations. Hence, several research studies are underway to reduce grain losses/degradation at the farm (upon harvest) and...

Background and Objectives Safety aspects regarding free asparagine concentration in wheat arise because of its acrylamide formation potential in baked wheat products. Free asparagine concentration in wheat is affected by environment, genotype, and nitrogen and sulfur fertilization, which also affect wheat protein content and composition. Changing p...

Background and objectives The presence of acrylamide, a probable carcinogen, is a global concern for the baking industry. The reduction of free asparagine in wheat is an effective strategy to mitigate acrylamide formation. However, field‐based strategies for this purpose also affect gluten strength and bread quality. Therefore, we investigated the...

The study evaluates the effect of pulse milling pre-treatments such as moisture conditioning and mechanical scouring on the compositional (moisture, protein, ash), functional (water-holding capacity), and physical (L*a*b* color, particle size distribution) properties of pulse flours. Two different types of pulses of pure cultivars, lentil (Lens cul...

In this research, the effect of different milling processes on pulse quality parameters has been investigated. Chickpea and navy bean seeds were milled using a laboratory-scale roller mill with four different streams: middling 1, middling 2 and 3, break, and straight grade (SG) flours and a Ferkar mill. The effect of mill type on particle size of c...

Background and Objectives Extraction of proteins by alkaline extraction followed by isoelectric precipitation at three different flour: water (f:w) ratios (1:10, 1:7, and 1:5) were investigated for four pulse flours: yellow pea (YP), green lentil (GL), kabuli chickpea (CH), and navy bean (NB). Pulse flours were prepared by pre‐breaking the seeds an...

Background and objectives Pulse flours with different particle sizes are available for food production. The effect of varying milling techniques on quality characteristics of green lentil (GL) and yellow pea (YP) flours were investigated. Findings Using a Ferkar mill (one step vertical knife mill) caused wider distribution and bigger particle size...

A controlled fermentation process using straight-grade wheat flour, commercially milled from a grist of Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat and English wheat, and fresh yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) was found to be effective for developing a naturally derived product (ferment) that could be used for processing bread with the minimum use of do...

Background and objectives Understanding the influence of genotype (G) and environment (E) on the compositional, functional, and baking properties of pulse flours is important for expanding their use as alternative plant‐based ingredients. The objective of this research was to examine the effects of G, E, and their interaction (GxE) on flour and bre...

Yellow pea (Pisumsativum L.) is an economically rich source of nutrients with health‐promoting effects. However, the consumption of pea ingredients is minimal due to their off‐flavor characteristics. The present study investigated the effect of Revtech heat treatment on the chemical profile and volatile compounds in split yellow pea flour. Revtech...

Background and Objectives Thermally pretreating pulses prior to milling has been successful in improving sensory properties of foods formulated with them. This research investigated the effect of pretreating yellow peas, navy beans and fava beans using roasting and micronization and examined flour quality, end product quality and sensory properties...

The need to produce wheat with low asparagine concentration is of great importance as a measure to mitigate acrylamide concentration in wheat-based products. The association of asparagine concentration in Canadian bread wheat with cultivar, growing location, fertilizer and their interaction were investigated. Wheat cultivars (8) were grown in 2 loc...

Background and objectives Pulse flours can impart off‐flavors limiting their use in foods. The objective of this study was to examine the flour and bread making properties of whole and split yellow peas treated with dry and steam heat used as a premilling treatment. Findings Particle size distributions and pasting properties of flours milled from...

Background and objectives Germination of pulse seeds can effectively improve the functional and nutritional properties of resultant flours for broader food applications to deliver multiple health benefits. However, there is a lack of understanding on the performance of germinated pulse flours in bakery goods, particularly in bread. This study aimed...

The effect of storage on flour and baking properties of pulse flours was investigated. Commercially milled whole (yellow pea, navy bean, and chickpea) and dehulled/decorticated (yellow pea, red lentil) flours were stored in a warehouse, heated in the winter months. Flours were evaluated at 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24 months for water absorption capac...

Pulses, including peas, are a good source of protein, dietary fiber, folic acid, and iron and are reported to reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. However, pulse ingredients present a known challenge as they exhibit a grassy/beany off‐flavor. Heat treatment in some cases can decrease this off‐flavor. The objective of this study...

Background and objectives There is a growing global interest in partially replacing wheat flour with pulse flours in foods, including bread. However, undesirable flavors associated with pulse flours, especially yellow pea flour, have limited their use in foods. Pretreating pulses prior to milling offers a possible solution for improving the flavor...

Background and objectives Although there is growing interest in partially replacing wheat flour with pulse flours in bread, the flavor of pulse flours can limit their use. Heat treating pulse flours, with and without the addition of steam, was examined to determine whether the flavor of split yellow pea flour (SYPF) and whole navy bean flour (WNBF)...

Abstract included in the presentation file!

Background and objectives There is interest in partially replacing wheat flour with pulse flours in bread. However, flavor of pulse flours may be detrimental to the final product. Processing pulses prior to milling, using micronization and pregermination (early seed germination without radicle emergence), was investigated as a way to improve the fl...

The effect of adding fermented split yellow pea flour (SYPF) as a partial replacement for wheat flour in bread was examined. Three sourdough culture levels (3%, 6.5%, and 10%) and two fermentation times (1 and 4 hr) were evaluated. Total titratable acidity of ferment was measured to determine acid development. Bread was baked using three ferment in...

Our previous study on the use of low-intensity ultrasound for wheat variety discrimination showed the potential of ultrasound waves at 10 MHz for wheat screening and dough rheology evaluation. To further examine the reliability of the technique for wheat variety differentiation at 10 MHz, 23 hard red spring (HRS)wheat varieties with comparable brea...

Background and objectives Pulse flours are produced by dry grinding pulses. Currently, no standards exist for the particle size of pulse flours. The objective of this study was to investigate how particle size affected the flour and bread baking properties of commercially milled pulse flours and those produced using a Ferkar mill. Findings Finer p...

In the present study, yellow pea (CDC Amarillo) and faba bean (CDC Snowdrop) seeds were soaked overnight and then germinated in the dark at ambient temperature for 24, 48 and 72 h. During the short-term germination, germination percentages higher than 96.6% were achieved and progressive growth of radicles was observed for both varieties. The soaked...

The amino acid asparagine is considered the rate limiting precursor in the formation of acrylamide in cereal-based baked foods. However, there are no data on the quantity of this precursor in Canadian wheat. Wholemeal and white flour samples obtained from 30 Canadian hard red spring wheat grown in the Prairie provinces were analysed for asparagine...