EFFECTS OF HUMIDITY AND THE CONTENT OF SPROUTED AND SPOILED BUCKWHEAT GRAINS ON THE CHANGES OF ACID NUMBER OF FAT AND GRAIN ACIDITY

The connection between buckwheat grain quality and the changes of the acid number of fat (AN) and grain acidity after eight months of storage has been investigated. Parameters of buckwheat with different content of moisture, germinated grains, and spoiled grains were determined. The studies performed have shown that oxidative damage to buckwheat grain increases concomitantly to the increase of humidity and content of germinated and spoiled seeds. All three defects of grain (increased humidity and increased content of germinated and spoiled seeds) accelerate the hydrolysis of grain lipids, and this leads to an increase of the acid number of fat. AN can be considered an indicator of grain freshness and should be introduced as an indicator of buckwheat quality for inward inspection of grain.