Agriculture Business Week

Technically speaking, brown rice is called “unpolished rice” because the rice is not totally polished. But the Asia Rice Foundation(ARF) dubs it as a “whole rice grain” for in the rice milling of brown rice, only 28% of the husk is removed, while for the white rice, 38% of the husk is taken.

According to the Rice Chemistry and Food Science Division of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), brown rice is a good source of dietary fiber,  magnesium, lysine, and protein. It is believed to be more nutritious than white rice because when rice is polished, a significant amount (68% to 90%) of calcium, phosphorus, riboflavin, and thiamine are removed. Protein content is also lessened by. 15% when the bran layers are removed.

Any rice variety can be in the form of brown rice but it is better to consider rice varieties that are aromatic, good tasting, and acceptable to the public.

What has brown rice got to do then with a million hungry Filipinos?

First, it addresses the malnutrition problem in the country. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), about 4 million (31.8%) of the preschool population in the Philippines were found to be underweight for their age, while 3 million (19.8%) adolescents and 5 million (13.2%) adults, including older persons were found to be underweight and chronically energy deficient, respectively.

Given that brown rice is known for its high nutrient content, it could be the solution for the increasing number of malnourished Filipinos.

Second, it helps provide rice for everyone. Dr. Emil Javier, ARF chairman and national scientist, believes that brown rice can fill up the country’s 10 percent deficit in rice supply.

Studies show that brown rice has an advantage of 10% milling recovery compared to white rice. With this as a basis, Dr. Cezar Mamaril, the first to produce brown rice in Los Banos, Laguna, said, “Through brown rice we can easily make up with rice shortage.”

Dr. Mamaril, who is also a senior PhilRice consultant, added that the consumption of brown rice is lesser than white rice because it can easily make a person full, since it has lots of fibers. “If the stomach is easily satisfied, Filipinos will not order for extra rice anymore,” he jokingly uttered, knowing that Filipinos are rice lovers.

BROWN RICE IS FOR EVERY FILIPINO
At first, the group of Dr. Javier targeted the rich people because they are health conscious, and the price of brown rice is a bit higher than white rice.

Since then, brown rice has been stereotyped as the rice for rich people only. Dr. Mamaril then decided to sell brown rice in Los Banos, at an affordable price for everybody-brown rice for P35 per kilo and white rice for R32. The nutrients that people get from brown rice, its packaging, and the labor in separating the unhulled grains, from hullQd grains make the price reasonable.

Dr. Mamaril uses an IR841 line for brown rice because it is acceptable or has a good eating quality, aromatic, and has a tender texture. He started selling 300 kilos only in 2001 at P25/kg. However, because of the increasing demand for brown rice, his production has increased to 4-5 tons (4,000 kg-5,000 kg) a month.

He advises consumers to buy few kilos only and not in bulk because brown rice becomes rancid if it is not kept in proper storage.

THE MILLING SYSTEM FOR BROWN RICE
Traditionally, brown rice is produced using the mortar and pestle. However, because of the increasing demand for brown rice and its expensive price, Dr. Mamaril asked Dr. Silvestre Andales, also a PhilRice consultant, to design a machine for brown rice production.

According to Dr. Andales, the separation of unhulled paddy (palay) from the hulled brown rice during milling process makes the brown rice expensive. This comprises roughly 14% of the cost of brown rice in the market. Since most ricemills are intended to produce white rice, the machine needs necessary adjustments for milling brown rice.

The group of Dr. Andales designed and fabricated a brown ricemill that assembled together a dehulling unit, an aspirator, and a palay separator. This prototype was subsequently improved to come up with a third and final prototype.

“We are expecting and hoping that the latest design based on a foreign design, which is fabricated at PhilRice, will show a better performance,” said Dr. Andales. The latest design is the smallest and it was made from locally-available parts and materials.

The latest design can mill 15 to 20 cavans of palay per hour for brown rice production. If the machine becomes available, the price of brown rice will be 20% lesser than the price of white rice.

It took 1 1/2 years for the group of Andales to develop the brown rice milling system. Its cost of production is P80,000 and the manufacturer can sell it up to P100,000 per unit.

“Because of this machine, the price of brown rice will be the same with white rice, or maybe lesser, but with lots of health benefits,” Dr. Mamaril said.

The design is also available for interested manufacturers and they have the right to improve it for a better performance, Dr. Andales added.

Filipinos just need to accept brown rice. Changing the preference from white rice to brown rice is a long process but if it’s the only way to make the country, rice self-sufficient again, then why not give it a try?

Moreover, as the demand for brown rice increases, the brown rice milling system will serve its purpose, owing the makers a better quality and cheaper price that is available for everyone.