J. Trop. Agric. and Fd. Sc. 35(1)(2007): 99– 105 A. Rosniyana, M.A. Hashifah and S.A.

Shariffah Norin

The physico-chemical properties and nutritional composition of

rice  bran produced at different milling degrees of rice
(Ciri fiziko-kimia dan kandungan nutrien bagi dedak beras yang dihasilkan daripada
pengilangan berbeza)

A. Rosniyana*, M.A. Hashifah* and S.A. Shariffah Norin*

Key words: rice bran, physico-chemical, nutritional composition, milling degrees

Abstract
Rice bran was produced by milling the paddy variety MR 220 at different milling
degrees (MD) namely 2, 4, 6 and 8%. The proximate content and the effect of
different MD on nutritional content and physico-chemical properties of rice bran
were studied. The chemical composition of rice bran was significantly affected by
the milling process. Among the samples evaluated, rice bran produced at 8% MD
had the lowest protein, fat and crude fibre contents. Mineral content was highest
for rice bran produced at 6% MD, while the highest vitamin content was found in
rice bran produced at 2% MD. The study also indicated that all types of rice bran
offer healthier benefits.

Introduction distribution of chemical constituents,

The utilization of commercial rice bran thickness of anatomical outer layers, size
and its potential food values is recognized and shape of grains and resistance of grains
and it has recently been increased with the to breakage.
development of highly promising processes The machinery, processing and milling
and products. The quality and quantity of conditions are factors associated with the
bran produced at the mill are key factors milling process. Friction-type mills produce
in the utilization of the by-products (Kent bran of higher fat content, because they are
1983). Improvement in the quality of more effective in removing the aleurone
bran can be achieved by identifying and layer. However, the abrasive-type mills
correcting inadequate milling machinery remove starchier endosperm at equivalent
and/or improving their performances. degrees of milling (Barber 1979).
Removal of the small broken rice grains and Rice kernel layers at various depths
the husk particle passing along with bran is differ greatly in chemical composition
essential. (Resurreccion et al. 1979). As the percentage
One of the factors determining the removal of bran may range from 2 to 12,
potential use of bran for food uses is its the degree of milling greatly influences the
chemical composition (Juliano and Bechtel composition of commercial bran. Generally,
1985). The chemical composition of rice the differences are small and not great to
bran depends on several factors associated justify the segregation at the mill site of
with the grain itself and the milling process. the individual bran fractions as distinct
Major factors associated with the rice grain commercial products.
are varietal and environmental variability,
*MARDI Station, Bukit Raya, P.O. Box 1, 06707 Pendang, Kedah, Malaysia
Authors’ full names: Rosniyana Ahmad, Hashifah Mohd Ali and Shariffah Norin Syed Abdullah
E-mail: rosa@mardi.my
©Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute 2007

99
The nutritional composition and physico-chemical properties of rice bran
In industrial practice, bran from
successive whitening cones is combined
into a single product. However, bran with
sharp differences in composition could
be produced, which may be attractive to
specific markets (Webb 1985). In addition
to that, it is necessary to develop food grade
bran and standards to ensure that dependable
high-quality bran reaches the user and
consumer. A variable quantity of the
subaleurone layer of the endosperm material
normally shows up in the bran fraction,
depending upon the severity of milling.
Breakage of white rice kernel during
milling also results in small fragments of
the endosperm becoming part of the bran
fraction. Thus, the amount of starch and
other nutrients in the bran are functions of
the degree of milling.
The main objective of this study was to
assess the physical, chemical and nutritional
content of rice bran produced at different
milling degrees. These findings are useful
as the properties obtained will be related to
the quality and appearance attributes of food
products prepared from rice bran.
Materials and methods
Production of rice bran
A 2-tonne rice milling plant situated at
MARDI Station, Bukit Raya, Kedah was
used to process rice bran on a commercial
basis. The paddy used was the locally
developed rice variety MR 220 obtained
from MARDI Station at Tanjung Karang.
Paddy (1,000 kg) at a moisture content
of 14% (w.b.) was dehusked by a rubber roll
huller (model Satake, Japan). The mixture
comprising brown rice and paddy was
separated by a paddy separator. Brown rice
(approximately 750 kg) obtained from the
paddy separator was milled by a horizontal
abrasive whitener (model Satake, Japan.)
Through adjustments of a steel weight-load
and flow rates, rice bran at 2, 4, 6 and 8%
milling degrees (MD) were produced (Wahid
et al. 1997). Physical and chemical analyses
from four types of bran were carried out.
100
Physical analysis
The bulk density of rice bran was
determined by pouring the sample into
a 25  ml volumetric flask by shaking and
lightly tapping the bottom of flask on a
plastic pad (Chastril 1990). The flask was
filled up to the mark with rice bran, weighed
and bulk density of rice bran was calculated.
For each type of bran, the bulk density was
carried out in triplicate.
The rice bran (500 g) was separated
into particle-size fractions by retention
above 20, 30, 50 and 80 mesh screens.
Fractionation was repeated on three samples
from each type of bran on Rotap device
which was shaken for 5 min (Randall et
al. 1985). Colour was measured using a
Chroma meter CR300 (Minolta Camera
Co.) based on the CIE 1976 L*a*b* colour
rotation system. Colour determination was
conducted on 10 samples for each type of
bran and the results averaged.
Chemical analysis
Samples of rice bran were taken and
analysed for moisture, protein, crude
fibre, fat, ash, phosphorous, potassium,
sodium, calcium, iron, thiamine, niacin and
riboflavin. Moisture, protein, fat and ash
were determined using standard AOAC
methods (AOAC 1990). Protein was
determined by Kjeldahl nitrogen method
using Kjeltec system 1026 (Tecator 1978).
Fat was determined by Soxhlet extraction
and ashing was done at 550 °C to constant
weight.
Crude fibre was determined by Weende
method using fibertec system (Tecator 1978).
Minerals and vitamins were analysed by an
accredited company Edtech Associates Sdn.
Bhd. according to the method by AOAC
(1993). Each analysis was carried out in
duplicate. Carbohydrate was calculated by
subtracting the values of moisture, protein,
crude fibre, fat and ash, from 100.
Experimental design and data analysis
Bran produced at 2, 4, 6 and 8% milling
was carried out in two replicates. All
 A. Rosniyana, M.A. Hashifah and S.A. Shariffah Norin

determinations were statistically analysed
by the analysis of variance and mean values
are presented. The Duncan Multiple Range
Test was used to detect differences between
treatments (Gomez and Gomez 1984).
Results and discussion
Physical properties
The bran had a characteristically uniform
light brown colour. Bran produced at 6%
and 8% MD (milling degree) had the
lightest colour compared with other bran.
This was reflected by the higher L* values
obtained (Table 1). This bran was also more
red and more yellow and this was reflected
by the higher a* and b* values. According
to Symons and Dexter (1991), the L* value
of flour was highly related to pericarp and
aleurone fluorescence. They also found that
a* and b* values were sensitive to moisture
content and flour particle size, whereas L*
values were slightly sensitive to particles
size only.
It was suggested that the colour of
bran depends on the degree of milling
which involved gradual removal of bran
layer and germs from the rice endosperm.
Klamczynaki and Czuchajowska (1999),
Table 1. ����������������������������������������������������������������������
Physical properties of rice bran produced at different milling degrees
indicated that bran, which had visually
darker colour, contained mostly seed coat
and aleurone layers while those of much
lighter colour, consisted mostly of cell wall
material of the endosperm.
Bulk density of bran significantly
increased as the degree of milling increased.
The bulk density is determined by particle
geometric forms, porosity, starch and protein
structures, moisture content, particles
distribution and cell wall structure
(Chastril 1990). When all particles are small,
the bulk density of the powder is higher and
vice versa. Results suggested that the highest
bulk density (0.45 g/ml) of bran was due to
the presence of smaller particles. This was
also supported by the particle size of bran
produced at 8% MD which had the highest
value for the smallest particle size
(Table 2).
Generally particle distribution and
average particle size between bran produced
at different MD differed significantly
(Table 2). Increased in MD resulted in
increase of weight fraction of smaller
particles. Weight fraction of smallest
particles was higher than the other fraction
in all types of bran. Bran produced at 8%

Milling degree (%)

2 4 6 8
Colour
L* (lightness) 57.0a 56.7a 58.6b 58.4b
a* (red to green) +4.03c +0.26a +4.26c +3.46b
b* (yellow to blue) +32.8b +1.44a +34.4b +33.1b
Bulk density (g/ml)   0.33a   0.39b   0.41b   0.45c
Mean values in the same row with different letters are significantly different at p <0.05

Table 2. Percentage of different particle size of rice bran produced at different milling degrees

Mesh sieve Particle size Milling degree (%)

size (mm) 2 4 6 8
  20   0.85 0 0 0 0
  30   0.60 16.8 ± 0.5a 16.5 ± 0.2a 17.3 ± 0.2b 17.0 ± 0.1b
  50   0.30 32.4 ± 0.3a 34.5 ± 0.5c 33.7 ± 0.4b 31.0 ± 0.2a
  80   0.18   9.1 ± 0.1b   8.80 ± 0.1a   8.6 ± 0.2a   9.4 ± 0.1c
>80 <0.18 41.7 ± 0.3a 40.2 ± 0.5a 40.2 ± 0.4a 42.6 ± 0.2b
Mean values in the same row with different letters are significantly different at p <0.05

101
The nutritional composition and physico-chemical properties of rice bran

had the highest fraction of smallest size
particle (42.6 %). Research by Klamczynaki
et al. (1998), showed that the outer part of
the grain kernel is more compact than the
inner part and therefore, after removing the
harder outer part by gradual milling, the
inner softer part produces very fine flour.
The results suggested that bran
obtained at higher milling degree (8%)
would probably produce bran of smaller size
particle as compared to bran produced at
2–6% MD. In addition, other work showed
that degree of milling may change the
pattern of particle size distribution and this
may relate to the component present in the
bran (Chastril 1990).
Proximate and nutritional composition
The proximate composition of rice bran
produced at 2, 4, 6 and 8% MD is shown in
Table 3. In most cases, the effects of milling
degree on proximate composition were not
great. The unequal removal of bran layers as
a result of the irregular geometrical shape of
the caryopsis and of the rough and difficult-
to-control abrading or friction action in the
whitening machine greatly contributes to
composition differences (Resurreccion et al.
1979).
Carbohydrate content of analysed rice
bran ranged from 28.71 ± 0.75% to 33.54 ±
0.35%. The major carbohydrates in bran are
cellulose and hemicellulose which give the
thick cell wall of the pericarp, the seed coat
and the aleurone layer (Juliano and Bechtel
1985). There seemed to be no significant
difference in carbohydrate between bran
produced at 2, 4 and 6% MD. However at
8% MD, the bran had significantly higher
carbohydrate content than the other bran.
Results suggested that the increase in starch
content was due to endosperm breakage
during milling. It was also reported by
Saunders (1990) that carbohydrate content
varies according to the amount of breakage
and milling degree and values of 10–20%
could be expected.
The crude fibre content of rice bran
varied with the degree of milling. Bran
produced at 8% MD (11.29 ± 0.35%) had
the lowest while bran at 2% MD (13.20
± 0.05%) had the highest. It was reported
by Juliano (1985) that decrease in crude
fibre was noted on removal of the first two
bran fractions, which represented the 6%
(by weight) of the outer layer.
Bran produced at 2% MD had
the highest value for protein content
(13.12 ± 0.20%). No significant difference
was observed in protein content of bran
produced at 2% and 4% MD. However,
there was a significant reduction in protein
content for bran produced at 6% and 8%
MD. This observation suggested that more
protein was present in the aleurone and
outer layer of brown rice. Other study also
indicated the differences in protein content
were evident in the polish and subaleurone
fraction (Juliano 1993).

Table 3. Proximate composition (% wet weight basis) of rice bran produced at different
milling degrees

Composition Milling degree (%)

2 4 6 8
Moisture   9.53 ± 0.05a 10.01 ± 0.15b 10.24 ± 0.2b 10.19 ± 0.10c
Protein 13.12 ± 0.25b 13.07 ± 0.55b 12.69 ± 0.35a 12.37 ± 0.15a
Fat 24.39 ± 0.01b 24.59 ± 0.75b 26.05 ± 0.25c 21.53 ± 0.10a
Carbohydrate* 29.23 ± 0.35a 28.75 ± 0.01a 28.71 ± 0.75a 33.54 ± 0.35b
Crude fibre 13.20 ± 0.05b 13.0± 0.05b 12.47 ± 0.55b 11.29 ± 0.35a
Ash 10.53 ± 0.01a 10.58 ± 0.05a 10.84 ± 0.75a 11.08 ± 0.75a
*Calculated by difference
Mean values in the same row with different letters are significantly different at p <0.05

102

High fat content was detected among
the samples with mean values ranging
from 21.5–26.05%. The fat content
for bran produced at 2% and 4% MD
differed significantly from that of bran
produced at 6% and 8% MD. The fat
content started to decrease after 6% bran
fraction was removed and this was found
to be a significant reduction. The lower fat
content of bran at 8% MD could be due to
endosperm contamination.
According to Champagne et al. (1990)
that much larger percentages of lipid are
extracted from 1.3% MD than 9.1% MD
of milled rice kernels. Thus the results
suggested that fat was more concentrated in
the outer surface of bran layer as most fat is
found in the aleurone layer.
The ash content ranged from
10.53–11.08%. The higher ash content in all
types of bran contributed to its high mineral
content. No significant difference was
observed in ash content between all types of
bran.
Mineral composition
Rice bran is a good source of minerals
(Table 4) which are present in varied
amounts. The mineral composition of
rice grain depends considerably on the
availability of soil nutrients during crop
growth and generally present in higher
levels in the bran layer of rice kernel
(Juliano and Bechtel 1985).
The major mineral in the samples was
potassium which ranged from 1,030 to
1,160 mg/100 g sample (Table 4). Potassium
Table 4. Mineral composition (mg/100 g) of rice bran produced at different milling degrees
Composition Milling degree (%)
2 4 6 8
Calcium    49.00 ± 3.00b    49.41
Iron     5.30 ± 0.50a     5.45
Magnesium   718.00 ± 0.00b   683.00
Sodium    26.00 ± 1.00a    25.00
Potassium 1060.00 ± 0.25b 1050.00
Phosphorous 1390.00 ± 0.01d   892.00
Mean values in the same row with different letters are significantly different at p <0.05
A. Rosniyana, M.A. Hashifah and S.A. Shariffah Norin
is the principle salts of phytin, and located
in globoids in the aleurone protein bodies
(Thompson and Weber 1981). Bran
produced at 6% MD had the highest amount
of potassium and showed a significant
difference with other samples.
Phosphorous was present within a
range of 668 to 1,390 mg/100 g sample
and showed significant differences among
samples. As for magnesium, the content
ranged from 683 to 884 mg/100 g sample
and results indicated that bran produced
at 4% and 8% MD had significantly lower
magnesium content than bran produced at
2% and 6% MD.
The iron levels varied within a narrow
range (5.30–5.90 mg/100 g sample). Bran
at 6% MD had significantly higher iron
content than other bran. The levels of
calcium in the bran ranged from 47 to
54 mg/100 g sample. The calcium content
increased significantly from 4% to 6% MD
and deceased significantly after 6% bran
fractions removed.
Generally results suggested that
the mineral contents in the bran varied
according to the degree of milling which
indicated that the distribution of mineral
constituents in the bran layers differed. The
same trend was observed by Resurreccion
et al. (1979) and reported that the calculation
of nutrient distribution in milling fractions
of brown rice confirms the uneven
distribution of minerals in the various tissues
of rice caryopsis.
± 0.25b    54.00 ± 0.50c    47.00 ± 4.50a
± 0.7b     5.90 ± 0.25c     5.30 ± 1.00a
± 0.68a   884.00 ± 0.01c   689.00 ± 0.50a
± 0.20a    28.0 ± 0.10b    24.00 ± .900c
± 0.72b 1160.00 ± 0.10c 1030.00 ± 0.10a
± 0.01b 1140.00 ± 0.25c   668.00 ± 0.02a
103
The nutritional composition and physico-chemical properties of rice bran
Table 5. Vitamin composition ( mg/100 g) of rice bran produced at different milling degrees
Composition Milling degree (%)
2 4 6 8
Thiamine   3.10 ± 0.10c   3.00 ± 0.25c   2.70
Riboflavin   0.32 ± 0.10b   0.31 ± 0.01b   0.32
Pyridoxine   4.30 ± 0.10b   3.40 ± 0.25a   3.70
Niacin 41.00 ± 0.10d 34.00 ± 0.01a 37.00
Mean values in the same row with different letters are significantly different at p <0.05
Vitamin composition
Vitamins found in the rice bran are shown
in Table 5. It was reported by Juliano and
Bechtel (1985) that more than 80% of
vitamin in rice kernel is found in the bran
layer. The thiamine levels were varied from
2.50 –3.10 mg/100 g sample. At 2% and
4% MD, the bran had the highest thiamine
content and the levels were significantly
decreased as the MD increased. Riboflavin
was present in the range of 0.27 to 0.32
mg/100 g sample. The lowest riboflavin
content was found in bran produced at
8% MD. No significant difference was
observed for riboflavin contents between
bran produced at 2, 4 and 6% MD.
However, there was a significant reduction
in riboflavin content for bran produced at
8% MD.
Pyridoxine was in the range of 3.40
to 4.30 mg/100 g sample. Bran at 2% MD
had the highest pyridoxine content and
decreased significantly after 4% MD bran
removal. Niacin was present within a range
of 34 to 41 mg/100 g sample and significant
differences among the samples were
observed. No trend was shown between
degree of milling and niacin content
whereby the highest and lowest values for
niacin content in the bran were produced
by 2% MD and 4% MD respectively. Thus
the range of vitamin found in the various
fractions of bran reflects the degree of
milling and possible hull contamination.
Conclusion
The chemical composition and physico-
chemical properties of rice bran produced
at different milling degrees showed
104
± 0.01b   2.50 ± 0.05a
± 0.05b   0.27 ± 0.10a
± 0.01a   3.70 ± 0.05a
± 0.05b 39.00 ± 0.10c
considerable variations. Bran samples also
contributed to differences in mineral and
vitamin contents. Rice bran produced at
8% MD had the lowest protein, fat and
crude fibre contents. With the exception of
phosphorous, mineral content was highest
for bran produced at 6% MD, while vitamin
content was found highest in bran produced
at 2% MD. Rice bran is a nutritious product
as it contains substantial amount of protein,
vitamins and minerals.
Acknowledgement
The authors would like to thank Ms Meriam
Harun and Ms Hadijah Bakar for technical
assistance.
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Abstrak
Dedak beras telah dihasilkan dengan mengisar padi varieti MR 220 pada darjah
pengilangan berbeza (DP) iaitu 2, 4, 6 dan 8%. Kandungan proksimat serta
kesan DP terhadap kandungan nutrien dan ciri fisiko-kimia dedak beras telah
dikaji. Kandungan kimia dedak beras dipengaruhi dengan ketara oleh DP. Antara
dedak beras yang dinilai, dedak beras yang dihasilkan pada 8% DP mempunyai
kandungan protein, lemak dan serabut yang terendah. Kandungan galian tertinggi
diperoleh oleh dedak beras yang dihasilkan pada 6% DP, manakala kandungan
vitamin tertinggi terdapat pada dedak beras yang dihasilkan pada 2% DP. Kajian
juga menunjukkan dedak beras mempunyai nilai pemakanan yang tinggi.

Accepted for publication on 12 July 2006

105