Whole wheat flour.

[Golden Ghost]

Jeff, in his book In Defense of Food author Michael Pollan says before 1870 they could not get the germ out of wheat flour. Because of this when the stones crushed the germ it released oil and shorten its shelf life and it would get rancid. Then they invented rollers and could grind the flour finer and remove the germ and solve the rancid problem.
Now every town did not have to have its own mill and the white flour could be stored and shipped from the big cities. This was how white flour was invented.
So why is the 100% whole wheat flour that I have had for at least six months not rancid if it has germ and oil in it?

[JeffN]

Jeff, in his book In Defense of Food author Michael Pollan says before 1870 they could not get the germ out of wheat flour. Because of this when the stones crushed the germ it released oil and shorten its shelf life and it would get rancid. Then they invented rollers and could grind the flour finer and remove the germ and solve the rancid problem.
Now every town did not have to have its own mill and the white flour could be stored and shipped from the big cities. This was how white flour was invented.
So why is the 100% whole wheat flour that I have had for at least six months not rancid if it has germ and oil in it?

Whole wheat flour has a much shorter shelf life than white flour.

Whole wheat flour that is not stored refrigerated, many be going rancid.

On whole wheat flour, from a culinary site..

Shelf Life: 6 months to one year in the freezer if stored in tightly sealed plastic containers or if tightly wrapped. It will keep for only a few months if stored in a cabinet. Due to the presence of the wheat germ, resulting in an unsaturated oil content that is higher than refined flour. The potential for rancidity is greater if whole-wheat flour is kept for long periods and particularly if it is not stored under refrigerated conditions. It is best to store whole-wheat flour in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator or freezer.

In Health
Jeff

[Jaggu]

Good question. I was myself wondering about the same.

[boardn10]

What about whole wheat products?