Fundamentals of Food Technology

Cereals and Millets

• Cereals and millets constitute by far the most important group of foodstuffs as they form the staple food of a large majority of the population throughout the world.

• They form about 70 to 80 per cent of the diets of the low income groups in India and other developing countries.

• They contain about 6 to 12 per cent proteins and are good sources of some vitamins e.g., thiamine, niacin, pantothenic acid and vitamin B6 and minerals e.g., Phosphorus and iron.

• Hence, they provide 70 to 80 % of the calories, 6-10% of proteins and other nutrients mentioned above in the diets of the low income groups.

• All cereals except ragi are poor to moderate sources of Calcium. Ragi is one of the richest sources of Calcium containing about 344 mg/100g.

• Cereals are deficient in Vitamins A, D, B12 and C.

• Puffed cereals are consumed widely as a snack by the low income groups in India.