“The NCD Next Generation Milling System is a revolution in the milling industry. It has many benefits for a factory. The most important of these is that it provides the opportunity to produce high-protein content flour from low-protein content wheat. And it ensures that the wheat is milled without losing its moisture at every point during the flour production. As the wheat reaches the optimum softness during tempering, the pressure on the rollers decreases, thus the amperage rating in the rollers decreases, which saves a lot of electricity.”
Nebahat Cenik Durukan
Chairwoman of Board
Elit Food
The decline in wheat quality due to drought caused by global warming in recent years and the rapid increase in raw material prices make it difficult to find quality products in the milling and bakery industry. The downgrading of wheat quality, which is one of the biggest problems of the sector, prompted many domestic and foreign companies to find solutions. One of these companies is Istanbul-based Elit Food. Continuing its R&D studies with the principles of innovation, diversity and sustainability, the company continues to develop different perspectives, creative ideas, products and processes for the milling and bakery sector.
Nebahat Cenik Durukan, Chairwoman of the Board at Elit Food, states that thanks to the new generation grinding system they have developed, they have succeeded in extracting 15-16% protein and 25% luxury baklava and pastry flour from 12 protein wheat. “This is a real miracle,” she says.
Durukan, an experienced name who has served the Turkish milling and flour industry for many years, comments that by using science, they have succeeded in introducing more gluten into the system. “This provides great profitability to the flour mills.”
The answers given by Nebahat Cenik Durukan to our questions are as follows:
Ms. Durukan, could you please provide us with some brief background information on your company?
Elit Food started its activities 27 years ago. We entered the milling industry with the production of flour and bread improvers, laboratory services and technical consultancy. Afterward, we continuously expanded our purpose, products and subject instruments according to the needs of the industry. We have developed many products and applications that can be considered the first in the industry.
Due to the shortage of durum wheat, we have carried out important studies with the enzyme mixtures and color applications we have developed to produce pasta from bread wheat.
Against the fumigation applications used by flour mills for mold, bacteria and insect infestation problems, we introduced the completely natural, 100% safe and FDI-approved GP Ozone disinfection system, which is a first in the world and does not bleach the flour, does not create nitrous oxide.
In addition, we started to provide milling consultancy services with Elit Mill Inc., which was established within the Elit family. We added a new one to our works in this field in the past weeks, and we made our mark in the milling sector with the NCD New Generation Milling System, which we developed with the slogan "This Flour is Another Flour".
As Elit Food, we have a team that is capable of serving a flour factory at every point in the entire chain from wheat to laboratory, from mill to disinfection and final product, as can be understood from our slogan "An Elite Touch From Virgo To Bread".
Could you provide some information on the NCD New Generation Milling System?
Turkey has very important know-how in the milling industry and ranks 1st in the world in flour export. We have a very good knowledge of both manufacturing of milling machines, establishing turnkey plant and diagrams, product development and R&D studies, production and sales of flour and bread additives. Turkey has become a country that exports sectoral information and services as well as flour exports. As Elit Food, we are proud to have a share in this accumulation and to contribute to the milling industry of our country.
What is NCD Next Generation Grinding System?
The flour milling process all over the world consists of 5 stages.
There is a phrase used in milling: Grinding starts with tempering and ends with tempering. With this phrase, it is very well emphasized on how important tempering is in the process. Based on this philosophy, we thought about what we could improve in this process and started our R&D studies from this point. Our project consists of 3 phases:
Phase 1: The tempering process of flour mills has two stages. We do the first tempering with ozonated water. We both eliminate the negative effects of chlorine and purify our water from the microbial load with ozone.
Phase 2: We perform the second tempering with a solution whose R&D has done ourselves. NCD MAX, our product consisting of enzymes and food additives, is produced in accordance with the food codex. NCD MAX is a mixture that has Halal and Kosher certificates and does not contain chemicals harmful to human health. Our mixture ensures the wheat to swell better, the water we give is distributed evenly in every part of the wheat kernel, and it can be tempered without losing moisture. In addition, since it gives elasticity to the wheat bran, it ensures that the bran is separated better during grinding and that the semolina is obtained more homogeneously in B1 rollers.
Phase 3: We make changes to the diagram in the factory. With NCD MAX, we achieve much more successful results by making appropriate adjustments to the rollers, sieves and some flows in order to grind the wheat whose structure has changed as a result of tempering.
What kind of benefits does the new generation milling system, which is named after your initials, provide for a flour plant?
The NCD Next Generation Milling System is a revolution in the milling industry. It has many benefits for a factory. The most important of these is that it provides the opportunity to produce high-protein content flour from low-protein content wheat. With this project, we are returning the gluten into the flour, which is expelled with bran and shorts in the existing grinding systems. This is a huge success.
For example, from an analyzed wheat which results were obtained from Chopin CD-1 mill in the laboratory as 27 gluten, 80 extensograph energy, when milled at an average flour extraction yield of 79-80% in this system, 25% top quality flour with values of 37 gluten, 200 extensograph energy and max. ash : 0,55% are obtained. From the rest 75% of this yield flour, 27 gluten, 100 extensograph energy and ash : 0,65%-0,68% bread flour are obtained.
WE ARE MAKING MIRACLE PRODUCTS
Then, can we say that thanks to your new milling system, low protein wheat that could not be used in the production of flour for baklava and pastry can now be used as well?
It is really like a miracle to obtain 25% luxury baklava and pastry flour with 15-16 protein from 12 protein wheat…But we do not create miracles. By using science, we succeed in introducing gluten into the system. It will be very easy for a producer to calculate how much profitability these gains bring for a flour mill.
The rate of luxury flour that can be obtained from the NCD New Generation Milling System varies according to the hardness and hectoliter values of the wheat used. We have succeeded in obtaining 5%-30% luxury flour in our milling trials on different wheat qualities.
In both quality flours obtained from the NCD system, the structure of both luxury and bread dough varies greatly. Its water-binding increases, it does not lose its moisture like play dough, it acquires a very good elasticity, its strength increases and its fermentation stability increases. In short, it provides all the surplus features you want to see in a perfect flour. When you knead the dough, you can understand very well that this flour is another flour.
What other advantages does this system provide to flour mills?
As the wheat reaches the optimum softness during tempering, the pressure on the rollers decreases, thus the amperage rating in the rollers decreases, which saves a lot of electricity. At the same time, the factory runs quieter.
It ensures that the wheat is milled without losing its moisture at every point during the flour production, from the beginning to the end of the process, and maintains the moisture balance. This means profit for a factory.
OUR GOAL IS TO ADD VALUE TO OUR INDUSTRY
In the promotional video of the new system, " It has been applied for the first time in the world.” you mention. You also continue to add value to flour with your experience and R&D activities in the flour and bread improvers sector. How will this contribute to Turkey's flour export?
There are no known examples of this project. This is a first not only in Turkey but also in the world! We think that our project is an important milestone and a very important start for the sector. We aim to make our country much stronger in this sector, add value to the industry and do something useful for this country. Then, we want to make our name in the world and put our signature under successful works.