Hairless Canaryseed: A Novel Cereal with Health Promoting Potential

Abstract

Glabrous canaryseeds were recently approved for human consumption as a novel cereal grain in Canada and the United States. Previously, canaryseeds were exclusively used as birdseed due to the presence of carcinogenic silica fibers; therefore the nutritional value of the seeds has been seriously overlooked. Two cultivars of glabrous canaryseeds (yellow and brown) were created from the hairy varieties. They are high in protein compared to other cereal grains, and contain high amounts of tryptophan, an amino acid normally lacking in cereals, and are gluten-free. Bioactive peptides of canaryseeds produced by in vitro gastrointestinal digestion have shown antioxidant, antidiabetic, and antihypertensive activity. The seeds contain other constituents with health promoting effects, including unsaturated fatty acids, minerals, and phytochemicals. Anti-nutritional components in the seeds are comparable to other cereal grains. Because of their beneficial health effects, canaryseeds should be regarded as a healthy food and have immense potential as a functional food and ingredient. Further research is required to determine additional bioactive peptide activity and capacity, as well as differences between the yellow and brown cultivars.

Effect of sodium chloride, sucrose, and xanthan gum on pasting properties and gel syneresis of hairless canary seed starch

“…The hairless canary seed was recently approved as a novel food by Health Canada and received GRAS status from the US FDA. Previous research has shown its potential as a whole‐grain food ingredient (Mason et al, ; Patterson et al, ) and a promising source of small starch granules and plant protein (Abdel‐Aal & Hucl, ; Abdel‐Aal et al, , ; Irani et al, ). The current study demonstrates better stability for hairless canary seed starch gels over wheat starch gel during refrigerated storage and freeze–thaw treatment.…”

“…Sodium chloride, sucrose, and xanthan gum are usually used in food formulations, particularly in baked products to improve flavor, taste, texture, and color. Recently, two reports have shown the potential of hairless canary seed as a food ingredient in many food applications including baked goods and baking mixes (Mason, L’Hocine, Achouri, & Karboune, ; Patterson et al, ). Salts can result in either increase or decrease in the rate of starch gelatinization, gelation, and retrogradation subject to their type and concentration (Chiotelli, Pilosio, & La Meste, ; Wang, Zhou, Yang, & Cui, ; Wang et al, ).…”

Thinking Outside of the Cereal Box: Breeding Underutilized (Pseudo)Cereals for Improved Human Nutrition

“…Buckwheat is almost exclusively sold as dehulled grouts and flour produced from dehulled groats. Canary seed's potential in the human diet has been elucidated thus far for dehulled groats also (Abdel-Aal et al, 2011;Mason et al, 2018), while broomcorn millet is occasionally sold as white flour. The additional processing steps reduced the mineral nutrient content in dehusked buckwheat grains as observed similarly in the major cereals (Oghbaei and Prakash, 2013;Pandey et al, 2015).…”

Microstructure and distribution of oil, protein, and starch in different compartments of canaryseed (Phalaris canariensis L.)

“…A recent addition to the cereal group is canaryseed (Phalaris canariensis L.), which is a true cereal belonging to the family Poaceae. Canaryseed contains ~19%-23% protein (Mason et al, 2018;Patterson et al, 2018) which is higher than that of other cereals, or pseudocereals, commonly available in the market (Bekkering & Tian, 2019;Patterson et al, 2018). Canada, especially the province of Saskatchewan, is the leading producer and exporter of canaryseed in the world (Patterson et al, 2018;Canaryseed Development Commission of Saskatchewan, n.d.).…”

“…However, hairless (glabrous) canaryseed varieties, devoid of siliceous trichomes (hairs) that are toxic to human beings, were recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration Agency and Health Canada for human consumption (Health Canada, 2016;Patterson et al, 2018). The higher protein content, potential to produce bioactive peptides and gluten-free nature, provides potential for the increased use of canaryseed in the food industry (Mason et al, 2018) as a plant protein source over other conventional cereal grains.…”