Parboiled Rice

In News

• Recently, almost 1,000 tonnes of parboiled rice are reportedly held up at the ports in Tamil Nadu since last month following the Central government order that levied 20% duty on raw rice exports and banned export of broken rice. 

About Parboiled Rice

• Parboiled rice refers to rice that has been partially boiled at the paddy stage, before milling.
  • However, there is no specific definition of parboiled rice of the Food Corporation of India or the Food Ministry. 
• Parboiling of rice is not a new practice, and has been followed in India since ancient times. 

Are all rice varieties suitable for parboiling?

• Generally, all varieties can be processed into parboiled rice, but it is ideal to use long slender varieties to prevent breakage during milling. 
• However, aromatic varieties should not be parboiled because the process can make it lose its aroma.

Benefits

• Parboiling makes rice tougher: this reduces the chances of the rice kernel breaking during milling.
• Parboiling also increases the nutrient value of the rice.
• Parboiled rice has a higher resistance to insects and fungi.

Disadvantages

• The rice becomes darker and may smell unpleasant due to prolonged soaking.
• Setting up a parboiling rice milling unit requires a higher investment than a raw rice milling unit.

Source: TH