One of the major drawbacks of using malted cereal flours, including malted ragi flour, in the beverage mixes is their tendency to sediment. This challenge has been addressed by the CSIR-CFTRI, Mysuru, and the unique non-sedimenting malted ragi-based instant beverage mix has been developed.
The new innovation from the premier institute in Mysuru was launched at the CSIR pavilion during the World Food India event in New Delhi recently.
CSIR-CFTRI Director Dr. Sridevi Annapurna Singh and some scientists from the institute were present.
The beverage mix, a note from the CSIR-CFTRI said, from malted ragi is an instant drink mix. This can be reconstituted with hot or cold mix and consumed. Beverage mixes available in the market contain mainly extracted solids from barley malt (barley malt extract) as a base material. The product developed by the CSIR-CFTRI is unique as it contains refined flour from malted ragi at 30 percent level and the content of barley malt extract is reduced to above 18 percent, the note added.
The beverage mix from the malted ragi contains above 13 grams of protein, more than 3,590 mg of calcium per 100 grams of the sample and provides 362 kcal of energy.
Ragi is a natural source of calcium without any added fortificants. The product can be conveniently fortified if required with added vitamins and minerals and can be prepared in different flavors to suit the target population, the institute said in the note.
