Appendix
Where the numbers come from
Quern is a miller’s kitchen, not a lab notebook. Protein, calories, and minerals are typical values from public databases and harvest surveys — cited below so you can check us. Your bag will still vary by field and year.
How we built the tables
- Values are typical whole-grain flour, per 100 g, rounded for a kitchen (not a COA). Your bag will move with variety, nitrogen, and harvest.
- Protein % on a flour bag is 12% moisture basis in U.S. trade. We follow that convention.
- Min / typical / max protein for class wheats come from U.S. Wheat Associates and Canadian Grain Commission harvest surveys, not a single USDA row.
- Gluten % is estimated from typical dry-gluten/protein ratios for that grain’s class (AACC 38-12 / ICC 137 style), then scaled down for bolted flour because bran is gone and endosperm is concentrated. Gluten-free grains are listed as 0%.
- High-extraction (85%) and bolted (≈75%) protein/gluten are miller adjustments from the whole-meal number (sifting drops a little protein, slightly raises gluten %). They are not separate USDA foods.
- Calories and minerals follow USDA FoodData Central whole-grain entries. When FDC has grain but not flour, we use the grain row — milling doesn’t invent iron.
- History blurbs are standard agricultural history (domestication, Mennonite Turkey Red, etc.), compressed for the atlas — not original archival research.
Primary sources
- USDA FoodData Central
Calories, protein, carbs, fiber, fat, iron, magnesium, zinc, thiamin, and selenium per 100 g. We use SR Legacy / Foundation Foods whole-grain entries (flour when listed, grain/groat when flour is missing), rounded.
- USDA National Nutrient Database, SR Legacy
NDB numbers below are the old Standard Reference IDs still searchable in FoodData Central. They are the backbone of most public nutrition tables.
- U.S. Wheat Associates — Crop Quality Reports
Hard red winter / spring, hard white, soft red/white, and durum protein *class ranges* (min–typical–max). Updated every harvest.
- Canadian Grain Commission — harvest quality surveys
CWRS, CWHWS, and other class protein and gluten surveys. Used to cross-check U.S. class ranges.
- AACC Approved Method 38-12 / ICC 137 (wet gluten)
Wet gluten is a lab wash, not “protein.” Dry gluten is estimated from typical wet-gluten/protein ratios for each class (≈0.75–0.85 × protein for modern bread wheat; lower for ancient and rye; 0 for gluten-free grains).
- Shewry & Hey, Food and Energy Security (2015)
Wheat’s contribution to diet; protein vs glutenin/gliadin. Why einkorn can test high in protein and still make a slack dough.
- Hidalgo & Brandolini, J. Sci. Food Agric. (2014) — einkorn
Einkorn composition: protein often 15–18% with weak gluten. Used for einkorn typical/min/max.
- Longin et al., crop science reviews of hulled wheats
Spelt, emmer, einkorn agronomy and grain quality ranges used for ancient-wheat protein bands.
- FAO / INFOODS West African Food Composition Table (fonio)
Fonio nutrition — USDA has little or no SR entry, so calories/minerals follow INFOODS, not FDC.
- Oldways Whole Grains Council — grain profiles
Retail names, flavor notes, and which berries actually show up in U.S. bins. Not a lab source.
- Jeffrey Hamelman, Bread (3rd ed., Wiley) — baker’s % defaults
Default hydration, salt (~2%), and process times for the fifteen breads. Home-mill adjustments (extra water, faster ferment) are miller rules of thumb, not a lab.
By grain
FDC links open USDA FoodData Central. NDB is the old Standard Reference number. Protein ranges cite crop-quality reports when the USDA row is a generic “whole wheat.”
| Grain | USDA / FDC | Protein band |
|---|---|---|
| Hard Red Winter Wheat Atlas 11–13.5% (typ. 12.2%) | FDC 168913 SR NDB 20081 | U.S. Wheat Associates HRW crop quality: typically 11–13.5% (we use 12.2% typ.). Nutrition aligned to USDA SR whole-wheat flour (NDB 20081). HRW is the bulk of that entry. |
| Hard Red Spring Wheat Atlas 13–16.5% (typ. 14.5%) | Search FDC: wheat flour whole-grain SR NDB 20081 | U.S. Wheat Associates / CGC CWRS: 13–16%, typ. ~14.5%. Same USDA flour table for minerals; protein band from spring-wheat harvest surveys, not the SR mean. |
| Hard White Wheat Atlas 11.5–14.2% (typ. 12.6%) | Search FDC: wheat flour whole-grain SR NDB 20081 | U.S. Wheat Associates hard white: typically 11–13%, we use 12.5%. Hard white is genetically bread wheat with a non-red bran. Minerals ≈ whole wheat flour SR. |
| Soft Red Winter Wheat Atlas 8.5–11% (typ. 9.8%) | Search FDC: wheat flour whole-grain SR NDB 20081 | USW soft red winter: 9–11.5%, typ. ~10.2%. Pastry-class protein from crop reports. Nutrition otherwise SR whole-wheat flour. |
| Soft White Wheat Atlas 8–10.5% (typ. 9.2%) | Search FDC: wheat flour whole-grain SR NDB 20081 | USW soft white / white club: 8.5–11%, typ. ~10%. Pacific Northwest soft white surveys. Minerals ≈ SR whole-wheat flour. |
| Durum Wheat Atlas 13–15.5% (typ. 14%) | FDC 169734 SR NDB 20076 | USW durum: 13–16%, typ. ~13.8%. Semolina is bolted durum. Search FDC for durum wheat. Gluten is abundant but less extensible than bread wheat. |
| Spelt Atlas 12–15% (typ. 13.5%) | FDC 169745 SR NDB 20140 | FDC spelt grain ~14.6% protein; we use 14.5% typ. (13–16% band from hulled-wheat reviews). USDA SR NDB 20140. Wet gluten is weaker than the protein number suggests. |
| Einkorn Atlas 14–18% (typ. 16%) | Hidalgo & Brandolini 2014: often 15–18% protein, weak gluten. Typ. 16%. No reliable SR flour entry. Minerals interpolated from published einkorn tables + wheat SR as a check. | |
| Emmer (Farro) Atlas 12–15% (typ. 13.2%) | Hulled-wheat literature (Longin et al.): ~12–15%, typ. 13.5%. Farro on U.S. shelves is usually emmer. FDC farro/emmer entries vary; protein band is from crop papers. | |
| Khorasan (Kamut®) Atlas 13.5–17.5% (typ. 15.2%) | FDC 169761 SR NDB 20141 | USDA Kamut, khorasan, uncooked (NDB 20141) ~14.5% protein. KAMUT® is a branded khorasan. Nutrition follows that SR entry. |
| Rye Atlas 8–12.5% (typ. 10.5%) | FDC 168884 SR NDB 20063 | USDA dark rye flour NDB 20063 ~8.8–10% protein; we use 10.2% whole-rye typ. Pentosans, not gluten, do the water-binding. Gluten class is weak on purpose. |
| Barley (Hulled) Atlas 9.5–13.5% (typ. 11.5%) | FDC 170283 SR NDB 20004 | USDA hulled barley NDB 20004 ~12.5% protein. Hulled (not pearl) is the whole grain. Beta-glucan drives viscosity more than gluten. |
| Oat Groats Atlas 12–17% (typ. 13.5%) | FDC 173904 SR NDB 20038 | USDA oats NDB 20038 ~13.2% protein, gluten 0 (avenin is not wheat gluten). Certified gluten-free oats still have no wheat gluten; they may be unsafe for celiac if contaminated. |
| Triticale Atlas 12–15% (typ. 13.2%) | FDC 169744 SR NDB 20076 | USDA triticale NDB 20076 ~13% protein. Wheat × rye hybrid. Gluten is moderate. SR entry is grain, not flour. |
| Dent Corn Atlas 7.5–10.5% (typ. 8.8%) | FDC 168918 SR NDB 20014 | USDA yellow corn grain NDB 20014 ~9.4% protein, gluten 0. Dent is feed/masa corn. Home millers use dried dent or flint. Nutrition is whole-grain maize. |
| Flint Corn Atlas 8.5–12% (typ. 10%) | Search FDC: corn grain yellow SR NDB 20014 | Same maize SR as dent; flint is a kernel type, not a different nutrient class. Polenta/johnnycake corn. Protein ~9–10%, no gluten. |
| Proso Millet Atlas 10–12.5% (typ. 11%) | FDC 172023 SR NDB 20031 | USDA millet, raw NDB 20031 ~11% protein, gluten 0. Proso millet is the U.S. retail default. |
| Sorghum Atlas 9.5–12.5% (typ. 10.6%) | FDC 169716 SR NDB 20067 | USDA sorghum grain NDB 20067 ~10.6% protein, gluten 0. Whole-grain sorghum, not syrup. Tannin vs tannin-free types vary in flavor more than protein. |
| Teff Atlas 11–14.5% (typ. 13%) | FDC 169747 SR NDB 20142 | USDA teff, uncooked NDB 20142 ~13.3% protein, gluten 0. Ivory and brown teff share the SR entry. Injera fermentation is a different story. |
| Brown Rice Atlas 7–8.5% (typ. 7.5%) | FDC 168875 SR NDB 20036 | USDA brown rice, long-grain, raw NDB 20036 ~7.9% protein, gluten 0. Short-grain brown is similar. White rice is not in this atlas. |
| Wild Rice Atlas 13–16% (typ. 14.7%) | FDC 169726 SR NDB 20088 | USDA wild rice, raw NDB 20088 ~14.7% protein, gluten 0. Zizania, not Oryza. High protein for a grass seed. |
| Buckwheat Groats Atlas 12–15% (typ. 13.3%) | FDC 170286 SR NDB 20008 | USDA buckwheat NDB 20008 ~13.2% protein, gluten 0. A knotweed, not a grass. Groats vs flour: we list groat-equivalent whole flour. |
| Amaranth Atlas 13–16.5% (typ. 14.5%) | FDC 170682 SR NDB 20001 | USDA amaranth grain, uncooked NDB 20001 ~13.6% protein, gluten 0. Lysine-rich relative to cereals. Tiny seeds, whole-meal flour. |
| Quinoa Atlas 13–16% (typ. 14.1%) | FDC 168917 SR NDB 20137 | USDA quinoa, uncooked NDB 20137 ~14.1% protein, gluten 0. Rinse saponins before milling if the bag is not pre-washed. |
| Fonio Atlas 8–10.5% (typ. 9%) | FAO INFOODS West African tables: ~8–9% protein, gluten 0. USDA FDC coverage is thin. Calories/minerals follow INFOODS, flagged on the Sources page. | |
| Freekeh Atlas 12–15% (typ. 13.5%) | Search FDC: bulgur wheat dry SR NDB 20012 | Roasted green wheat; protein tracks the parent wheat (~12–14%). We use ~12.7%. FDC has bulgur (par-cooked wheat) rather than freekeh specifically. Treat as whole-wheat class. |
26 of 26 atlas berries have a dedicated citation row.
What we are not claiming
These are not lab results for the berries in your jar. Vital wheat gluten protein (75–80%) is the range printed on Bob’s Red Mill, Arrowhead Mills, and similar retail bags — check yours. Baker’s percentages and process times are formula conventions (Hamelman and home-mill practice), then scaled to your dough weight.
Found a harvest report that disagrees? Open the atlas and treat Quern as a starting mill setting, not a statute.