Speaker
Dr
Maria do Carmo Freitas
(URSN-ITN, Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear)
Description
Cereals are the most significant agricultural crops not only by the sheer magnitude of their gross-tonnage production and prevalence in human diets worldwide, but also as food vehicles of important items for human nutrition and wellness at large -- proteins, dietary fibres and oligoelements, such as selenium, calcium, zinc and iron, to name just a few. Still, some micronutrients feature an uneven distribution in the upper continental crust, and thus in cultivation soils deriving therefrom. Whether soils have always been poor in an essential element, or have just become deprived of it by intensive farming, the result is the same: insufficient soil-plant transfer, feeble-to-nonexistent plant uptake, and, therefore, unsatisfactory dietary distribution of that element through the food chain. Countries that implemented corrective programs of crop biofortification and consumer education have been successful in dealing with some micronutrients' deficiencies. Given their relative weight in Portuguese diets, cereals are obvious candidates for crop-supplementation strategies that may contribute to an upgrade in the health status of the whole population. A good knowledge of element-baseline data for major cereal varieties (plants) and main production areas (soils) is a pre-requisite though. The present work was aimed at an elemental characterization of cereals and soils from relevant wheat-producing areas of mainland Portugal. This paper is focused on wheat samples -- bread and durum wheats; Triticum aestivum L. and Triticum durum Desf., respectively -- from the 2009 campaign, collected at Alto and Baixo Alentejo (inland regions). Elemental concentrations were determined by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA; k0-variant), and assessed with the k0-IAEA software. Quality control of the procedure was asserted through the analysis of NIST-SRM 1568a (Rice Flour), NIST-SRM 1572 (Citrus Leaves) and GBW 07404 (Limy-yellow Soil). Results are discussed and compared to available data from abroad.
Author
Ms
Catarina Galinha
(CERENA-IST, Technical University of Lisbon)
Co-authors
Dr
Adriano Pacheco
(CERENA-IST, Technical University of Lisbon)
Dr
Maria do Carmo Freitas
(URSN-ITN, Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear)
