Best Practices for Measuring the Color of Flour

Flour is an essential ingredient for many recipes, often affecting the final color of the finished product whether it's a cake or pasta dish. As a flour producer, your company relies on consistent results for each batch so customers can trust your brand.

Components That Affect Flour Color

Proper flour color is important for ingredient quality and the product's overall appearance, ultimately influencing a buyer's decision. Before you create your flour, you should measure the quality of the ingredients to streamline the production process and reduce potential issues.

Several things go into the overall color of flour, including:

• Wheat endosperm: This ingredient is the primary factor in flour color. Ensuring it's fresh can save you time and headaches in future production runs.
• Moisture: A flour's moisture doesn't necessarily change the flour itself, but it affects the crumb color of a finished baked good.
• Ash: This material is the mineral in wheat flour and is associated with the purity of wheat endosperm.
• Protein: All flours contain protein, but exact levels can vary across types. The protein level — especially in bread flour — can determine baking performance and appearance.
• Free fatty acids: Flour has a low level of free fatty acids, but if it's stored in high-temperature conditions, it can create more free fatty acids that affect its color.

Speed up the Color Measurement Process With a Spectrophotometer

A spectrophotometer can test the color quality of flour products and provide quantitative data for exact types, from whole wheat to bleached varieties. Today, modern technologies like the solutions from HunterLab can test textured, granular, and non-uniform samples like flour.

Measuring the color and quality of flour throughout the production process can ensure it stays within industry standards and customer expectations. By implementing these practices, you can increase your company's efficiency and production time.

HunterLab has a series of spectrophotometers that perform a spectral analysis for the various properties of different foods. Specifically, the ColorFlex L2 can measure and classify flour with common food industry scales and indices. This compact device packs a powerful punch to measure flour color the way human eyes see it with enhanced accuracy.

Request a Quote for the ColorFlex L2 From Hunterlab

HunterLab has been an industry leader in spectrophotometric solutions for over 70 years. Our team is here to answer any questions you have or provide a quote for our products. Contact us today!