Iron-fortified parboiled rice – A novel solution to high iron density in rice-based diets

The present study pioneered an investigation of a novel and cost-effective approach to fortify Fe in rice and to greatly improve Fe nutrition in rice-based diets through parboiling, though it remains at its preliminary phase. Rice grains of seven cultivars were parboiled in deionised water containing different levels of Fe chelate made by mixing different proportions of Fe sulfate (FeSO₄) with ethylenediaminetetra-acetic acid disodium salt (Na₂EDTA). Adding Fe to the parboiling water resulted in an increased Fe concentration in the most grain, effectively where FeSO₄ and Na₂EDTA were mixed at 2:1 molar ratio (11.16 g Fe per 100 g raw paddy grain). This treatment resulted in Fe concentrations in white rice milled for 60 s and 120 s, which were 20–50 times higher than those in the unfortified milled raw rice grains. The Fe concentrations in milled rice grains were 50–150 mg Fe kg⁻¹ in 60 s milled grains with a slight reduction in 120 s milled grains. Perls Prussian blue staining of the cross section of Fe-fortified parboiled rice grains suggested inward movement of added Fe into the endosperm through the apoplastic pathway in the dorsal region of the rice grain. The retention rates of fortified Fe varied among the different cultivars, possibly due to different physical–chemical properties of the grains. The percentages of soluble fraction of the total Fe were higher than 50% in all cultivars tested, indicating its high bioavailability potential, though it remains to be evaluated. The present findings provided a preliminary basis for further investigation of this innovative technique, before its adoption by parboiled rice industry, such as optimising the levels of Fe addition and industrial process and Fe bioavailability in Fe-fortified-parboiled rice.     

Iron fortification and parboiled rice quality: appearance,cooking quality and sensory attributes

BACKGROUND: Iron (Fe) fortification of parboiled rice increases both Fe concentration and bioavailability in milled grains (i.e. white rice). The aim of the present study was to evaluate parboiled rice fortified with 250 and 450 mg Fe kg^?1 paddy rice for its pre‐cooking appearance, cooking quality, basic sensory attributes and overall acceptance in comparison with unfortified parboiled rice in Thailand and local parboiled rice in Bangladesh. RESULTS: Fe fortification at 250 mg Fe kg^?1 paddy rice significantly elevated Fe concentration in white rice to as high as 19.1 mg Fe kg^?1 white rice, compared with 6.2 mg Fe kg^?1 white rice for unfortified parboiled rice, without any adverse impact on consumer acceptance based on the current preliminary assessment. The added Fe was well retained in the cooked rice, with significant residual value for human intake. Panellists in Thailand and Bangladesh did not detect significant differences in the acceptability of parboiled rice fortified at 250 mg Fe kg^?1 paddy rice compared with unfortified and local parboiled rice respectively. However, Fe fortification of parboiled rice at the higher level of 450 mg Fe kg^?1 paddy rice significantly intensified the yellow colour of the grain and changed the off‐flavour, chewiness and flakiness of the cooked Fe‐fortified parboiled rice. This resulted in a low acceptability ranking of parboiled rice fortified at 450 mg Fe kg^?1 paddy rice by panellists in both Thailand and Bangladesh. CONCLUSION: Fe fortification of parboiled rice at an appropriate level (e.g. 250 mg Fe kg^?1 paddy rice) is dosage‐effective and acceptable to rice consumers. Consumer acceptability of Fe‐fortified parboiled rice is closely related to pre‐cooking appearance, cooking quality and sensory attributes. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Key factors affecting Fe density in Fe-fortified-parboiled rice: Parboiling conditions,storage duration,external Fe-loading rate and genotypic differences

The present study evaluated the key factors affecting the efficiency of iron (Fe) penetration into the endosperm in parboiled rice of different varieties. It also investigated effects of storage time on Fe bio-accessibility, rice colour and Fe retention after rinsing. Rice grains of three varieties were fortified with an increasing range of Fe-fortification rates during the parboiling process, under two typical parboiling conditions, which are ambient soaking temperature for 24 h and 60 °C soaking temperature for 6 h at neutral (6.0–6.5) and acidic pH (3.0–3.5). Soaking of paddy rice, at 60 °C in acidic water for 6 h before steaming, was found to be better for maximising the Fe concentration in white-parboiled rice than the former ambient soaking. Under this parboiling condition, adding 250 mg Fe kg⁻¹ of paddy rice, at soaking, produced the most desirable Fe concentration in white rice, ranging from 17.5 to 25.4 mg kg⁻¹ among the rice varieties tested. The concentrations of Fe in parboiled white rice exhibited an exponential increase with increasing concentrations of Fe in the soaking water in all varieties, which were linearly related to Fe concentration of brown rice (r = 0.96∗∗, p < 0.01). The colour of the parboiled rice fortified with Fe was initially light yellow, with variation among rice varieties, but it did become slightly darker after 16 weeks of storage, probably because of Fe oxidisation. This may be related to decreasing bio-accessibility after 20 weeks of storage. Storage, however, did not affect the total Fe retention after rinsing, though the retention rate was variety-dependent. Information about parboiling will provide the basis for formulating an optimal industry protocol for producing Fe-fortified-parboiled rice, which can be further refined in pilot studies on the industrial scale.     

Zinc fortification of whole rice grain through parboiling process

The present study evaluated the effectiveness of zinc (Zn) fortification in a parboiling process for improving Zn density in parboiled-polished rice and its potential bioavailability in the human diet. Fortification of Zn in whole paddy rice grain with 50–400 mg Zn/kg paddy rice, during parboiling, increased Zn concentrations in polished-parboiled rice from 1.3 to 4.5 times those in unfortified parboiled rice. The added Zn rapidly penetrated into parboiled rice grains in the initial soaking process before saturation. There was an exponential correlation between Zn concentrations in unpolished (r = 0.63) (p < 0.01) and polished rice (r = 0.30) (p < 0.05) and soaking time. Zinc concentrations in unpolished rice were linearly correlated with Zn concentration in the polished rice (r = 0.60) (p < 0.01). Moreover, more than half of the added Zn is retained after a simulated washing process before cooking, ranging from 64–100%. In the Zn-fortified parboiled rice, 57–100% of Zn in polished rice grain was soluble in dilute acid, which was indicative of a high potential Zn bioavailability for human intake. The results suggest that parboiled rice has great potential for Zn fortification.     

Some properties of corn grains and their flours I: Physicochemical,functional and chapati-making properties of flours

The variability in physical (1000 kernel weight and bulk density) and mechanical (rupture force) properties of grains from different Indian corn varieties (African tall, Ageti, Early composite, Girja, Navjot, Parbhat, Partap, Pb sathi and Vijay) were studied. The functional (colour, gelatinization, retrogradation and pasting) and chapati-making properties of flours milled from corn varieties were evaluated. African tall flour showed the highest enthalpy of gelatinization (ΔH_gel), peak-, trough-, breakdown-, final-, and setback viscosities, and L^∗ (84.4) value and resulted in chapaties with higher extensibility (5.76 mm) and of light colour. African tall flour, with the lowest protein content, showed the lowest grain rupture force. Amylose content and hardness of starch gel from African tall were found to be the lowest among all corn varieties. Girja flour, with the lowest transition temperatures and ΔH_gel, showed the lowest extensibility of chapaties made from it. Pearson correlations between physical and textural properties of corn grains and the functional properties of their flours were established. Rupture force of corn grain and protein content of flour showed a negative correlation with peak viscosity of flour (r = −0.917, and −0.863, p < 0.01). The protein content of flours was negatively correlated with L^∗ (r = −0.759, p < 0.01) value and positively with b^∗ (r = 0.635, p < 0.01) value. Pasting temperature of flours showed a significant negative correlation with peak, trough, breakdown, final and setback viscosities (r = −0.836, −0.846, −0.778, −0.871, and −0.847, respectively, p < 0.01). Pearson correlation was also established between the grain and starch properties. Rupture force of corn grains was positively correlated with the amylose content of starch (r = 0.950, p < 0.01).     

Neriifolin S, a dimeric serine protease from Euphorbia neriifolia Linn.: Purification and biochemical characterisation

A dimeric serine protease Neriifolin S of molecular mass 94 kDa with milk clotting activity has been purified from the latex of Euphorbia neriifolia by anion exchange and size-exclusion chromatography. It hydrolyses peptidyl substrates l-Ala-pNA with highest affinity (K_m of 0.195 mM) and physiological efficiency (K_cat/K_m of 144.5 mM s). Enzyme belongs to the class of neutral proteases with pI value of 6.8, optimal proteolytic activity displayed at pH 9.5 and temperature 45 °C. Its proteolytic activity is strongly stimulated in the presence of Ca⁺² ions and exclusively inhibited by serine protease inhibitors. Enzyme is fairly stable toward chemical denaturants, pH and temperature. The apparent T_m, was found to be 65 °C. Thermal inactivation follow first order kinetics with activation energy (Ea), activation enthalpy (ΔH∗), free energy change (ΔG∗) and entropy (ΔS∗) of 27.54 kJ mol⁻¹, 24.89 kJ mol⁻¹, −82.34 kJ mol⁻¹ and 337.20 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹.     

Speciation of organic and inorganic selenium in selenium-enriched rice by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry after cloud point extraction

A new method was developed for the determination of organic and inorganic selenium in selenium-enriched rice by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry detection after cloud point extraction. Effective separation of organic and inorganic selenium in selenium-enriched rice was achieved by sequentially extracting with water and cyclohexane. Under the optimised conditions, the limit of detection (LOD) was 0.08 μg L⁻¹, the relative standard deviation (RSD) was 2.1% (c = 10.0 μg L⁻¹, n = 11), and the enrichment factor for selenium was 82. Recoveries of inorganic selenium in the selenium-enriched rice samples were between 90.3% and 106.0%. The proposed method was successfully applied for the determination of organic and inorganic selenium as well as total selenium in selenium-enriched rice.     

Development and Evaluation of Iron-fortified Extruded Rice Grains

ABSTRACT: Although rice can be fortified with iron by producing fortified extruded grains, achieving good sensory properties and high iron bioavailability is difficult. Our study aim was to develop iron-fortified rice with comparable sensory characteristics to natural rice using iron compounds of high bioavailability. We tested ferrous sulfate, NaFeEDTA, ferric pyrophosphate of different particle sizes (mean particle sizes: 20 (j,m, 2.5 μm, 0.5 μ-m) and electrolytic iron, as well as encapsulated forms of iron. Extruded rice grains containing 0.5 and 1 g Fe/ 100 g were produced using a single screw extruder and blended, respectively, with natural rice at a 1:100 or 1:200 ratio. Extruded rice grains were evaluated by color measurements and texture profile analysis, and iron loss during rinsing was measured. The sensory comparison between fortified and unfortified rice was performed using triangle tests. Color scores in a similar range to natural rice were obtained using ferric pyrophosphate as an iron fortification compound. The cooked extruded grains had comparable texture to cooked natural grains, and losses during rinsing were <3%. Fortification with all other compounds resulted in strong color changes. In the triangle tests, rice grains fortified with either of the 2 forms of micronized ferric pyrophosphate closely resembled unfortified rice in both uncooked and cooked form. Iron-fortified extruded rice grains with excellent sensory characteristics and potential high bioavailability can be produced using micronized ferric pyrophosphate.     

Factors affecting water uptake of rice grain during soaking

The soaking process of rice (raw, dehulled or bran and white) in plain water was investigated between 25°C and 65°C. The corresponding effective diffusion coefficients were evaluated by fitting experimental absorption curves to Fick's second law for diffusion out of sphere. Effective diffusion coefficients for raw, brown and white rice varied between 1.56×10⁻¹¹ and 7.20×10⁻¹¹ m² s⁻¹; 2.22×10⁻¹¹ and 8.82×10⁻¹¹ m² s⁻¹ and 20.5×10⁻¹¹ and 47.0×10⁻¹¹ m² s⁻¹, respectively, for the temperature range investigated. The amount of total solids leached increased with the increase of temperature and time; the highest corresponded to white rice. The rates of absorption of raw rice in aqueous solutions of ClH, CH₃COOH and PO₄H₃ at 25°C were quite similar and much lower than those in plain water at the same temperature. Raw rice soaked in NaOH aqueous solutions and Na₂CO₃ aqueous solutions gave, in terms of the diffusion coefficients, higher absorption rates than raw rice soaked in plain water. Absorption rates for raw rice soaked in NaOH concentrations were higher than those found in Na₂CO₃ concentrations. When raw rice was soaked in NaOH aqueous solution at 55°C the rate of absorption was coincident to that found during soaking of dehulled rice in plain water.     

Color changes in fish during grilling – Influences of heat transfer and heating medium on browning color

Samples of red sea bream (Pagrus major) were grilled under radiant (far-infrared radiation, FIR) and convective (superheated steam, SHS) heating. The temperature and color (CIE L^∗, a^∗, and b^∗ values) of the sample surface were monitored over time, using SHS, dry air, and N₂ as heating media. The rate of L^∗ changes was evaluated by treating the browning reaction as first-order. Color changes based on a^∗ and b^∗ values were effectively correlated with the L^∗ value, using empirical equations. A slower reduction in L^∗ for heating with SHS rather than FIR was obtained, probably because of different activation energies (31.5 and 50.7 kJ mol⁻¹) and frequency factors (8.2 and 4759 s⁻¹). The order of reductions in L^∗ was dry air > N₂≒$\fallingdotseq$ SHS. The absence of O₂ in the heating medium could be the reason for the delay in the browning reaction during heating using N₂ and SHS.     

Effect of frozen storage conditions (temperature and length of storage) on microbiological and sensory quality of rustic crossbred beef at different states of ageing

The effect of frozen storage conditions on meat from 36 Morucha × Charolais crossbred yearlings was studied. Slices of M. Longissimus thoracis were randomly assigned to groups arising from the combination of experimental factors. These factors were: ageing extent (3 and 10 days), length of frozen storage (0, 30, 75 and 90 days) and temperature (−20 and −80 °C). Regarding microbiological counts, although values were acceptable in all cases, longer storage time and longer previous ageing extent provided higher phychrotrophic bacteria counts. As frozen storage period increased, colorimetric parameters L^∗, a^∗ and C^∗ decreased, but H^∗ increased. Regarding Warner–Braztler shear force and tenderness values, an interaction (p < 0.05) between frozen storage and post-mortem ageing resulted from larger differences between frozen storage periods at shorter ageing periods than those at longer ageing periods. Frozen storage for 90 days resulted in a reduction in water holding capacity, without differences in juiciness. No effect of freezing temperature was observed in any of the parameters studied.     

Optimization of processing conditions to reduce oil uptake and enhance physico-chemical properties of deep fried rice crackers

Physico-chemical properties of fried rice crackers were studied as a function of fish powder content, processing conditions, frying temperature and frying time. The results showed that addition of fish powder content at 5, 10 and 15 g/100 g reduced the oil uptake by approximately 10, 14 and 22 g/100 g (db), respectively in comparison to the control without fish powder. The deep fried rice crackers mixed with fish powder tended to be lower in hardness, lower in expansion ratio and higher in bulk density in comparison to the control sample. The color parameter, L^∗ of fried rice crackers decreased with increase in fish powder content. In contrast, a^∗ and b^∗ values increased with increase in fish powder content. The moisture content of deep fried rice crackers decreased with increase in frying temperature and frying time. The oil uptake in fried rice crackers increased with increase in frying time but decreased with increase in frying temperature. With increase in frying temperature and time, the texture of rice crackers became harder, the bulk density increased, and the expansion ratio decreased. The optimum conditions resulting in desirable physico-chemical properties and minimum oil uptake were rice crackers with fish powder content of 9 g/100 g, fried at a temperature of 220 °C for 60 s.     

Stability and colour characteristics of PEF-treated cyanidin-3-glucoside during storage

The stability and colour characteristics of PEF (pulsed electric field)-treated cyanidin-3-glucoside (Cy-3-glu) was investigated during storage at 4, 24 and 37 °C. The degradation of Cy-3-glu was analyzed using a first reaction kinetics while its colour characteristics was evaluated using colour indices such as colour density (CD) and CIE L^∗a^∗b^∗ parameters. PEF had no post-effect on the stability and colour characteristics of Cy-3-glu during storage while the storage temperature had a significant effect (p < 0.05). The degradation of PEF-treated Cy-3-glu during storage conformed to the first-order reaction kinetics with regression coefficients R² greater than 0.9300. Corresponding to 4, 24 and 37 °C, the degradation rate constant k in Cy-3-glu significantly increased in the exponential order level of 10⁻⁴, 10⁻³ and 10⁻², while the t_1/2 (the time that 50% Cy-3-glu degradation would take) and D-value (the time that 90% Cy-3-glu degradation would take) of Cy-3-glu during storage decreased in the exponential order level of 10³, 10² and 10. The reduction of CD was closely related to the Cy-3-glu content in this study, the Cy-3-glu content was perfectly predicted using CD with a higher coefficient R² > 0.9999. A significant decrease in b^∗ and H⁰ value was obtained at all storage temperature (p < 0.05). A positive correlation was found between the Cy-3-glu content and b^∗ value or H⁰ value with a coefficients R² > 0.8400 during storage. ΔE increased significantly, ΔE was less than 2 at 4 °C while it was greater than 2 at 24 and 37 °C.     

Determination of Ge(IV) in rice in a mercury-coated glassy carbon electrode in the presence of catechol

Electrochemical adsorptive cathodic stripping voltammetry determination of Ge(IV) using the catechol complex on a mercury-coated (MC) electrode was prepared using a glassy carbon electrode (GCE), the peak potential of which was −0.5 V vs. Ag/AgCl on MCGCE. The various parameters of the catechol concentration, its pH, and others were optimized. The linear working ranges were obtained in the concentration of 2–700 μg L⁻¹ Ge(IV). The relative standard deviation at the Ge(IV) concentration of 50 μg L⁻¹ was 1.37% (n = 15) using the optimum condition, and the detection limit was found to be 0.6 μg L⁻¹ (8.26 × 10⁻⁹ M) (S/N = 3), with an adsorption time of 180 s. The Ge(IV) response was highly linear. This developed method was applied to Ge(IV) to determine the presence of rice grains.     

Phenolic compounds and fatty acids in different parts of Vitis labrusca and V. vinifera grapes

trans-Resveratrol, antioxidant activity, phenolic compounds, proximate composition, and fatty-acid composition were quantified in different parts (peel, pulp, and seeds) of four grape varieties: Brazil (Vitis vinifera), Benitaka (V. vinifera), Isabel (Vitis labrusca) and Niagara (V. labrusca). Large concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acid (18.84 and 9204.27 mg 100 g^− 1), linoleic acid (LA, 18:2n-6), from 5890.87 to 9148.93 mg 100 g^− 1, and alpha-linolenic (LNA, 18:3n-3), from 5.25 to 56.85 mg 100 g^− 1, were found in different parts of the four grape varieties. The lowest concentrations necessary for 50% inhibition of DPPH were (9.26 to 126.91 ??g mL^− 1) in seeds; the pulp did not have antioxidant activity. The total phenolic content varied between 0.04 and 122.35 mg EAG g^− 1; seeds had the highest concentrations (89.83 to 122.35 mg EAG g^− 1), especially in Niagara and Isabel varieties. trans-Resveratrol was detected in peels (1.17 to 12.96 ??g g^− 1) and seeds (2.03 to 2.44 ??g g^− 1) of the four varieties; however, it was absent in the pulp.     

Supplemental inulin does not enhance iron bioavailability to Caco-2 cells from milk- or soy-based,probiotic-containing,yogurts but incubation at 37 °C does

The in vitro effects of supplemental inulin (4%) on iron (Fe) availability in two different probiotic-containing yogurts were examined. Milk or soy-based yogurts, with and without inulin, were incubated (37 °C) for 48 h or without any incubation before comparison by an in vitro gastrointestinal digestion/Caco-2 cell culture model was used to assess iron bioavailability. The dialysable Fe fraction, cell ferritin formation, and cell associated Fe were monitored. Supplemental inulin decreased dialysable Fe only in non-incubated milk-based yogurt. In both yogurts incubation by itself increased dialysable Fe, and inulin increased the latter only in soy-based yogurt. Cellular ferritin concentration were higher after exposure to non-incubated milk-based than soy-based yogurt, although, after incubation the latter induced the highest ferritin formation. These data suggest that inulin does not have a direct effect on Fe bioavailability in the small intestine, and that probiotic bacteria play an enhancing role on Fe bioavailability.     

Determination of organochlorine pesticide residues in rice and human and fish fat by simplified two-dimensional gas chromatography

The residue levels of four hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers (α-HCH, β-HCH, γ-HCH and δ-HCH), 4 dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) congeners (p,p-DDE, o,p-DDT, p,p-DDD, and p,p-DDT), heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, aldrin, dieldrin and endrin in rice and its bran from Jiangsu Province, PR China, were investigated by simplified two-dimensional gas chromatography, coupled with micro-electronic capture detector (μECD). Concentrations of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) for ∑HCH ranged from 0 to 0.039 mg kg⁻¹ in the rice and 0 to 0.057 mg kg⁻¹ in its bran. For ∑DDT, the concentrations ranged from 0 to 0.053 mg kg⁻¹ in the rice and 0 to 0.051 mg kg⁻¹ in its bran. The five other OCPs, except HCH and DDT, were not detected. The major HCH isomers and DDT, congeners detected, both in the rice and its bran, were β-HCH and p,p′-DDE. Compared with the residue levels in the rice, the OCPs levels in fish and human fat were detected at higher residue levels. It is necessary to investigate the OCP residues in foodstuffs of the food chain in order to evaluate the potential health risk to humans.     

Elemental composition of cephalopods from Portuguese continental waters

Essential and contaminant elements concentrations were determined in the muscle tissue of octopus (Octopus vulgaris), squid (Loligo vulgaris) and cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis), caught off the Portuguese coast in 2004–2005. As expected, the largest concentrations found correspond to Cl, S, K, Na, P and Mg (average values between 629 mg (100 g)⁻¹, for Cl, and 435 mg kg⁻¹, for Mg, in octopus and squid, respectively). Above average concentrations of Zn, Cu, Fe and Sr were also found. The highest total Hg concentration was found in cuttlefish (0.36 mg kg⁻¹); however, this value did not exceed the recommended limit proposed by EU (0.5 mg kg⁻¹). Lead levels observed in all samples were always significantly lower than the EU limit (1.0 mg kg⁻¹). Regarding Cd, the 1.0 mg kg⁻¹ limit was only exceeded in two octopus samples. It may be concluded that the cephalopods studied do not constitute cause for concern, in terms of toxic elements, and could be safely used for daily intake of essential elements. Nevertheless, the squid contribution for elemental DI is minor in comparison to the other two species.     

Prediction of the amino acid composition in brown rice using different sample status by near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy

In this study, 279 samples of brown rice grains and their flour, selected from a larger original population, were scanned by NIRSystem model 5000 mono-chromator in these two kinds of sample status for near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) analysis. Spectral pretreatment method 2,8,8,1 combined with SNV + D scatter correction was found suitable for developing calibration equations for amino acids. Equations for total amino acid content and for all individual amino acids, excluding cystine, methionine and tyrosine, were developed with this spectral pretreatment method. These equations had low SECV (0.010–0.063%) and SEP (0.011–0.066%); with high 1 − VR (0.878–0.960), R² (0.837–0.947) and SD/SEP (2.421–4.333). The results suggest that equations for the thirteen amino acids from the two sample categories can be directly used to estimate the amino acid composition in brown rice. This indicates once more that NIRS is a powerful technology that could be very useful for the determination of amino acid content in breeding programs that involve brown rice as well as for quality control in the food industry.     

Elements in rice on the Swedish market: Part 2. Chromium,copper, iron,manganese, platinum,rubidium, selenium and zinc

A survey of the levels of some essential and non-essential trace elements in different types of rice available on the Swedish retail market was carried out in 2001–03. The types of rice included long and short grain, brown, white, and parboiled white. The mean levels found were: chromium (Cr)?=?0.008 mg kg^?1, copper (Cu)?=?1.9 mg kg^?1, iron (Fe)?=?4.7 mg kg^?1, manganese (Mn)?=?16 mg kg^?1, platinum (Pt)?<?0.0003 mg kg^?1, rubidium (Rb)?=?3.3 mg kg^?1, selenium (Se) =0.1 mg kg^?1; and zinc (Zn)?=?15 mg kg^?1. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used for the determination of Pt, Rb, and Se, after acid digestion. All other elements were determined using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) after dry ashing. Intake calculations were performed and it was concluded that rice may contribute considerably to the daily requirements of the essential elements Cu, Fe, Mn, Se, and Zn if rice consumption is high. The levels of some elements, e.g. Fe and Mn, were significantly higher in brown compared with white rice.