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Application of the Single-Kernel Characterization System to Wheat Receiving Testing and Quality Prediction

¹Bread Research Institute of Australia Ltd., North Ryde, NSW 2113 Australia. ²NSW Agriculture, Yanco, NSW 2703 Australia. ³The University of Sydney, Plant Breeding Institute, Narrabri, NSW 2390 Australia. ⁴University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK.

Single-kernel characterization system (SKCS) 4100 measurements on wheat were reproducible and stable and gave good correlations with relevant reference data, e.g., kernel weight vs. 1,000 kernel weight, kernel hardness vs. particle size index, and kernel moisture vs. oven moisture. Under field conditions at a receiving station in Coleambally (NSW, Australia), the SKCS 4100 operated faultlessly and the reproducibility of the results was as good as in the laboratory. The measurements were completed within the time taken for the normal testing sequence, and the histograms were shown to provide valuable information about the samples that would not otherwise be available. For example, the distribution of moisture contents of individual kernels provides additional information about the samples' potential storage stability. Data on the uniformity of hardness could be interpreted in terms of the potential of the wheat to provide a consistent milling performance. An imprecise (r² = 0.44) but potentially useful calibration was obtained for the prediction of flour yield under test milling conditions using SKCS 4100 measurements on wheat. A much stronger correlation (r² = 0.83) was obtained between SKCS data on wheat and the starch damage contents of flours produced on a pilot mill. Thus, the SKCS 4100 has the potential for early generation screening of wheat lines for flour yield and starch damage.