Broken rice: benefits and nutritional value

Rice, broken or whole grain, is one of the three most cultivated and consumed basic cereals in the world. It is of Asian origin but is currently grown and consumed all over the world. In fact, it is estimated that world consumption exceeded 500 tonnes in the last 2021/22 season.

Consumption of rice stands out compared to its direct competitors, maize and wheat, due to its high digestibility and rapid absorption of nutrients, particularly in the case of broken rice.

These characteristics, which make rice a cereal with a high level of utilisation during the digestive process, are just as present in whole grain rice as in broken rice.

Broken rice, or split rice, is a by-product of the rice production process, with fragments of the whole round rice grain obtained in the rice milling process resulting in small pieces of rice grains, which are, after all, still rice. Therefore, it has the same chemical composition as white or polished rice, which is obtained after the milling process, the removal of husks and processing for consumption. Only 72 % of the initial weight remains of which about 14 % will be broken grains, preferably for animal consumption, of course, but also for the production of food and beverages in other sectors.

Manufacturers of vegetable drinks, breakfast products and even beer also use broken rice as a main ingredient in their processes. Such is the case of Dacsa Group, whose broken rice is a benchmark in the food industry, both in animal feed companies and the brewing industry.

It is a fact that the nutritional benefits and versatility of broken rice are closely linked to the food industry because rice has outstanding nutritional value in terms of minerals such as calcium, magnesium, sodium or potassium that is multiplied together with other foods such as animal protein, vegetable protein or vegetables, providing a complete nutritional contribution to a demanding diet.

Broken rice is an ingredient commonly used in the production of food for animals, such as animal feed, as it is a source of quick energy with a high energy content thanks to its high starch content and the absence of anti-nutritional factors in its composition, a characteristic that makes broken rice an ideal feed for consumption in the case of young animals.