The Falling Number Test - What Is It and How Does It Work?

The Northern Great Plains states of North and South Dakota, Minnesota and Montana are the primary producers of hard red spring and durum wheat. Traditionally, the flour derived from hard red spring wheat has been used domestically to produce specialty type bread products or to blend with winter wheat flour for conventional types of bread. Approximately 50 per cent of the hard red spring wheat produced goes into the export market. The exported wheat is regarded by many countries to be the "Cadillac" of bread wheats. Approximately 50 per cent of the durum wheat crop, which is grown predominantly in North Dakota, is used for the domestic production of pasta products, while the remainder is exported. When sprouting occurs in spring and durum wheat, marketing of wheat, particularly in the export market, is threatened. With increased interest in the falling number test to detect sprout damage in wheat, several studies were conducted to evaluate this particular procedure and to elucidate factors which affect the falling number test