The document discusses alternatives to wheat for making bread in Egypt. It analyzes mixing wheat flour with barley, maize, sorghum, broken rice, sweet potato, and quinoa flours. Nutritional analyses show that mixing wheat flour with up to 20% barley or maize flour increased nutrients like fiber and ash without significantly changing protein levels. It is recommended to mix wheat flour with barley or maize flour up to 20% to decrease wheat imports by 1-2 million tons annually while meeting nutritional needs. Mixing with sorghum or quinoa is also discussed but not recommended due to lower yields or productivity compared to other options.

1. Wheat Alternatives
Maher A. Al-Maghraby
ARC
EGYPT

2. Historical Development of Bread
Pharaonic drawings show
that the ancient Egyptians
were the first to know the
method of fermentation,
the basic material for
making bread,
Bread is currently made
from Wheat flour in most
parts of the world, while
corn, barley, Oatmeal and
Rye flour may be used in
other regions of the world,

3.  Bread is a stable food and key axis in achieving food security currently in Egypt. Which
provides about;
• 45-55 grams of protein per day
• 60-80% of the energy necessary for the body,
• A large amount of salts (calcium - sodium - magnesium), vitamins (B12) and fiber.
3
 After 1970
Egypt began to move towards relying on wheat importation in making bread due to;
- Steady increase the population and wheat gap
- Changing the consumption pattern of the countryside,
- Expansion of the establishment of Baladi bakeries in the Egyptian countryside,
- Stopping the production of bread mixed with corn in most areas of the Egyptian
countryside,
 Before 1970,
It is known that Egypt was self-reliant on the local production of bread which
made mainly from wheat, barley, and maize.
Current Situation

4. 20.6
10
0
5
10
15
20
25
1 2 3
Million
metric
ton
Wheat Gap
6.3
4.3
Total Consumption Total Production
Private sector
Public sector
 Wheat: Egypt in marketing year 2021/22 trading 10 million metric tons (MMT) of locally-produced wheat.
 Egypt’s wheat consumption in 2021/22 at 20.6 MMT,
 The estimated gap supply is of 10.6 MMT, only 6.3 MMT are covered and supplied through public importation
while the remaining is covered by the private sector.
Identifying the Country’s Gap
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
21-22 2025 2030
wheat gap 10.6 10.8 12.9
million
metric
ton
Axis Title
Wheat gap
(Current and Expect)

5. Decreasing wheat Gap ( I )
5
Horizontal
Targeted area
2025 – 3.7
2030 - 4.0
Targeted Production
2025 – 10.7
2030 – 11.6
Vertical
Targeted productivity
2025 – 3.0
2030 – 3.2
Targeted Production
2025 – 11.1
2030 – 12.8
Consumption
2025 – 20.6
2030 – 21.5
Gap
2025 – 9.9
2030 – 9.9
Consumption
2025 – 20.6
2030 – 21.5
Gap
2025 – 9.4
2030 – 8.7
Targeted Production
2025 – 11.1
2030 – 12.8
Consumption
2025 – 18.5
2030 – 19.3
Gap
2025 – 7.4
2030 – 6.5
Improved
the situation
slightly but
still have an
expected
wheat gap
• Targeted area: million feddan
• Targeted Production, Consumption, Gap: million metric ton
Consumption
Patterns
Targeted area
2025 – 3.7
2030 - 4.0

6. Horizontal Expansion
(Assumption 1)
 2021-2023: 48-50%
 2025 : 52%
 2030: 54%
Horizontal and
Vertical Expansion
(Assumption 2)
 2021-2023: 48-50%
 2025 : 54%
 2030: 59%
Horizontal &
Vertical
and Consumption patterns
(Assumption 3)
 2021/2023: 48-50%
 2025 : 60%
 2030: 65%
Identifying Self-Sufficiency

7. Wheat
alternatives
Maize Barely Quinoa Sweet Potato Sorghum Broken rice
flour
7
Decreasing wheat Gap ( II )

8. 1- Baladi bread (wheat flour) mixed with
barley flour
Nutritional analysis of
Baladi bread mixed with
barley flour
Composition Wheat
(82%)
Wheat mixed with barley
10% 15% 20%
Protein 12.06 12.06 12.08 12.09
Fat 1.78 1.90 1.95 2.02
Fiber 1.84 2.37 2.65 2.90
Ash 1.04 1.15 1.21 1.27
Carbohyd. 85.12 82.58 82.11 81.72
Humidity 36.77 37.10 37.92 38.23
The results of mixed wheat flour with
barley flour showed,
- Increase of percentage of fat, crude
fiber and ash increased
- There was no change in the protein
content
- Baladi bread made from wheat flour
with different mixing rates was better
than the control sample (wheat
87.5%) in percentage loss of
freshness and an improvement in this
property.
 It is recommended to mix wheat flour
with barley flour by up to 20%.
 Possibility of using barley flour in
some other food products
Technical Evaluation

9. 3- Baladi bread (wheat flour) mixed with
Maize flour
Nutritional analysis of
Baladi bread mixed with
Maize flour
Composition Wheat
(82%)
Wheat mixed with maize flour
10% 15% 20%
Protein 12.06 11.92 11.75 11.50
Fat 1.78 2.01 2.12 2.20
Fiber 1.84 1.92 2.00 2.11
Ash 1.04 1.56 2.00 2.56
Carbohyd. 85.12 84.51 84.13 83.74
Humidity 36.77 36.70 36.62 36.50
The results of mixed wheat flour with
maize flour showed,
- Increase in fat, fiber and ash contents
- There was no significant change in
protein content,
- Baladi bread made from wheat flour
with different mixing rates was better
than the comparison samples in
percentage loss of freshness, and this
shows an improvement in this
property.
 It is recommended to mix wheat flour
with maize flour by up to 20%.
Technical Evaluation

10. 2- Baladi bread (wheat flour) mixed with
Sorghum flour
Nutritional analysis of
Baladi bread mixed with
Sorghum flour
Composition Wheat
(82%)
Wheat mixed with Sorghum
10% 15% 20%
Protein 12.06 12.75 12.58 12.21
Fat 1.78 0.63 0.65 0.67
Fiber 1.84 0.86 0.90 0.96
Ash 1.04 1.80 2.10 2.41
Carbohyd. 85.12
83.96 83.77 83.75
Humidity 36.77
34.85 35.11 35.88
The results of mixed wheat flour with
sorghum flour showed,
- Decrease in crude fat, fiber,
carbohydrate and humidity contents,
while ash was higher,
- There was no significant change in
protein content,
- Decrease of water absorption and
stretchability of the dough as well as the
size and weight of bread,
- Baladi bread made from wheat flour with
different mixing rates was better than the
control sample (wheat 87.5%) in
percentage loss of freshness and shows
an improvement in this property.
 It is recommend mixing wheat flour up to
20%.
Technical Evaluation

11. 4- Baladi bread (wheat flour) mixed with broken rice flour
flour
Nutritional analysis of Baladi bread
mixed with broken rice flour
Composition Wheat
(82%)
Wheat mixed with broken rice flour
10% 15% 20%
Protein 12.06 11.72 11.61 10.50
Fat 1.78 1.68 1.60 1.50
Fiber 1.84 1.73 1.69 1.65
Ash 1.04 0.97 0.93 0.90
Carbohyd. 85.12 85.63 85.86 86.95
Humidity 36.77 38.27 39.40 40.64
The results of mixed wheat flour with
broken rice flour showed,
- Decrease in protein, fat, fiber and ash
content,
- The bread produced has good
organoleptic qualities and is accepted
by the consumer,
- There was no significant difference
between baladi bread made entirely
from wheat flour as a control sample,
 It is recommend mixing wheat flour by
no more than 10% with rice fraction
flour in the baking industry.
Technical Evaluation

12. 5- Baladi bread (wheat flour) mixed with
Sweet Potato flour
Nutritional analysis of Baladi bread
mixed with tuberous flour
Composition Wheat
(82%)
Wheat mixed with tuberous
10% 15% 20%
Protein 12.06 2.5 5.5 8.2
Fat 1.78 1.65 1.44 1.10
Fiber 1.84 1.97 2.05 2.17
Ash 1.60 2.08 2.23 2.56
Carbohyd. 85.12 85.13 85.57 86.16
Humidity 33.50 34.70
35.62
36.70
The results of mixed wheat flour with
sweet potato flour showed,
- Increase in fiber and ash, while
protein and fat decreased ,
- Baladi bread made from wheat flour
had different mixing rates of S. Potato
in the separation rate of layers
compared to wheat flour alone,
 It is recommend mixing wheat flour up
to 10% with sweet potato flour. This
mixture will not significantly affect the
nutritional value and organoleptic
qualities of the resulting bread.
Technical Evaluation

13. 6- Baladi bread (wheat flour) mixed with
Quinoa flour
Nutritional analysis of
Baladi bread mixed with
Quinoa flour
Composition Wheat
(82%)
Wheat mixed with quinoa flour
10% 15% 20%
Protein 12.06 14.36 14.78 15.14
Fat 1.78 1.98 2.19 2.30
Fiber 1.84 2.25 2.38 2.69
Ash 1.60 2.31 2.68 2.70
Carbohyd. 85.12 81.35
80.35
79.86
Humidity 33.50 33.50
33.65
34.00
The results of mixed wheat flour with
Quinoa flour showed,
- Increase in protein, fat, fiber and ash
results in loss of freshness.
- The bread produced has good
organoleptic qualities and is
acceptable to the consumer compared
to the wheat sample alone.
 It is recommend mixing wheat flour by
up to 20% by weight with quinoa flour
in the bread industry, which will not
affect the sensory qualities of the
bread while leading to an
improvement in the nutritional value of
the final
Technical Evaluation

14. Wheat+Barley 10%
Wheat+Barley 20%
Wheat+Maize 20%
Wheat+Maize 10%
Wheat+S. Potato 10%
Wheat+ S. Potato 20%

15. Recommendations
Sorghum
•It is recommended to mix wheat flour with different mixing rates (10%, 15%, and 20%)
•Savings in the import of wheat from 1-2 million tons when mixing by 10-20%
•Increasing the cultivated area with sorghum to meet the demand by (90K-10%, 300K-15%, 550K-20%)
Barley
•It is recommended to mix wheat flour with maize up to 20% which was distinctive and satisfactory to the consumer
and conforms to the specifications of the Egyptian standard for bread
•Savings in the import of wheat from 1-2 million tons when mixing by 10-20%
Corn
• It is recommended for mixing wheat with barley up to 20% with some limitation due to;
• Competition with wheat and Low extraction rate,
•Increasing the cultivated area with barley to meet the demand by (500K-10%, 830K-15%, 1150K-20%)
Quinoa
• There is no recommendation for mixing wheat with quinoa due to;
• low productivity comparing to maize option
S. Potato
• There is no recommendation for mixing wheat with S. Potato due to;
• the moisture content of fresh potatoes reaches 70-80%,
• Low dry matter ( one ton of potatoes after drying is given from 200 to 300 kg of potato flour only)