NCI Cereal Innovators Webinar Series | Featuring Caroline Sluyter and Kim Koch

Caroline Sluyter, Program Director of the Oldways Grains Council

Kim Koch | Senior Food Scientist & Technologist at the Northern Crops Institute

Each month, NCI gives an update in the “Cereal Innovators” series that offers insight into the world of baking and cereal grains. This episode featured two special guests: Caroline Sluyter, Program Director of the Oldways Grains Council, and Kim Koch, Senior Food Scientist & Technologist for The Northern Crops Institute. The two provided great insight into the past, present, and future of ancient grains. 

The presentation started with NCI’s Kim Koch. He explained the different varieties of ancient grains and their many health benefits. He mentioned that ancient grains have played a big part in our history, and we are looking for them to make an impact in our future as well. Kim gave a great background of the importance of these grains. He made sure to mention how most of these grains are available in stores for consumers to try. Towards the end of Kim’s presentation, he made sure to add that there is not a specific definition for ancient grains. This phrase is used to describe grains that have been very impactful in our history and may have nutritional value. It is up to the consumer to decide if they are of value to them. 

Caroline Sluyter from Oldways Grain Council gave the second half of the presentation. Caroline’s part of the presentation was focused on not only the health benefits of ancient grains, but how they are healthy for our planet as well. She made sure to mention that ancient grains can withstand undesirable weather conditions. Caroline described ancient grains as having amazing flavors, textures, and colors, while other processed foods are bland and predictable. The nice thing about having predictable food is that we know what result we will end up with. These products are a safe option that don’t offer as much nutritional value. Caroline then went in-depth about the nutritional value ancient grains have to offer. While not all flours are created equal, there are many different applications for ancient grains. They offer great snack products, gluten-free products, and a variety of other benefits that consumers are looking to incorporate into their diets today. 

So this sparks the question of what is to come for ancient grains. Research is continuing on ancient grains and their impacts, but are currently being used in products like protein powders, prebiotics, and other wellness products. Caroline stated how ancient grains aren’t just about nourishment anymore. They are a combination of nutritional factors and other characteristics that consumers value in their diets. 

Northern Crops Institute greatly appreciates both Caroline Sluyter and Kim Koch’s professional input and their involvement in our webinar series. At NCI, we continue to work towards fulfilling our mission to support regional agriculture and value-added processing by conducting educational and technical programs that expand and maintain domestic and international markets for northern grown crops. 

To get more information about this webinar, including handouts and slides that were used, please contact Krista Jansen at krista.j.jansen@ndsu.edu. 

For more information about future webinars offered at NCI, click here

Check out the recording below!