Yemen conducts workshop to discuss changes in various baking parameters
The workshop highlighted the need for coordination between milling companies, pastry production labs, bakeries, restaurants, and the Consumer Protection Association to develop successful models for broader implementation.
YEMEN – Yemen’s Ministry of Economy, Industry, and Investment has held its first workshop with the aim of transforming food consumption patterns for baked goods by replacing white flour with brown flour and using various locally sourced grain products.
At the workshop’s opening, Engineer Moeen al-Mahqeri emphasized the health, economic, and social importance of this transition for consumers.
He explained that the workshop was designed to leverage past experiences with whole grain and wheat flour baked goods while gathering insights from the technical team involved.
Discussions focused on the production of bread, “blood” (a likely local dish), pastries, and other baked goods using these alternatives.
Minister al-Mahqeri reported encouraging initial results from the transformation efforts, stating that the ministry would fully support the development and expansion of these initiatives through two tracks.
The first track involves urgently increasing the production of baked goods made from whole wheat grains by adjusting extraction rates for various types of bread.
The second track focuses on supporting and encouraging bakeries to broaden their production of baked goods using local whole grains.
He stressed the importance of collaborative efforts between official authorities, milling companies, laboratories, and restaurants to raise awareness of the benefits of this transformation, promote healthy alternatives, and highlight the risks associated with consuming white flour.
The minister also emphasized the need for a gradual and well-studied approach to ensure the continuous availability of bread in all its forms and other healthy baked goods at affordable prices. He cited medical studies that warn about the risks linked to white flour consumption and related diseases.
Al-Mahqeri pointed out the economic and social dimensions of this shift, aiming to increase local grain consumption, reduce dependence on imports, and encourage farmers to boost grain cultivation, given Yemen’s diverse and high-quality local grain production.
He noted the continued presence of traditional dishes made from local grains and emphasized the necessity for awareness campaigns to promote their use and shift consumer preferences toward healthier options.
The minister outlined a two-track, two-stage vision for the program that begins with using unextracted wheat flour and eventually progresses to blending locally produced grains.
The workshop was attended by various officials, including the Undersecretary for Internal Trade, Mohamed Qataran; the Director of Market Stability at the Ministry, Khaled Al-Khulani; and the Director of Operations, Naguib al-Azhari.
Representatives from Chambers of Commerce and Industry, private sector companies, bakery preparation labs, popular bakeries, the oven and bakeries syndicate, and the President of the Yemeni Society for Consumer Protection reviewed studies on the use of wheat flour with different extraction rates in baked goods.
Successful experiments in producing pastries, bakery items, and sweets from local grains were also presented, along with experiences from restaurants that utilize brown flour for traditional dishes.
The workshop concluded with an agreement for milling companies to begin reducing the extraction rate for wheat flour to 88 percent in the first stage, aiming to transition to 100 percent whole wheat flour.
Efforts will be made to supply bakeries with the new product to gradually phase out white flour, alongside public awareness campaigns promoting the benefits of whole grain and locally sourced grain baked goods.
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