How to Get Certified for a Whole Grain Stamp
Certified whole grain foods are required by the Whole Grains Council (WGC) and USDA to contain at least 51 percent or 8 g of whole grains. Whole grains cannot be altered from their original form while in the field. Product ingredients must contain endosperm, germ and bran in their natural proportion. According to WGC, oilseeds, legumes and nuts are not whole grains. Products considered to be whole grain must meet requirements listed in the FSIS Interim Policy Guide on "Use of the USDA MyPyramid Reference on Meat and Poulty Labeling and Whole Grain Claims."
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
Apply for Whole Grain Stamp
-
1
Apply for membership with the Whole Grains Council (wholegrainscouncil.org). The whole Grains Council will send a stamp application upon receiving your annual dues.
-
2
Oilseeds, legumes and nuts are not considered whole grains. Follow the WGC grain definitions (wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/definition-of-whole-grains) to understand which grains qualify as whole grains. For example, nuts, legumes and oilseeds do not qualify as whole grains.
-
-
3
Calculate how many whole grains are in your product. For example, your product may have 800 g whole wheat flour, 600 g sorghum flour and 300 g of flaxseed. Remember, flaxseed is not a whole grain. Add 800 plus 600. Your product has 1,400 whole grains.
-
4
Divide the number of whole grains by the number of servings. For example, if the recipe makes 150 muffins, divide that by number of whole grains. Taking the number of whole grains in Step 3, divide 1,400 by 150. Your muffins would have 9.3 g of whole wheat per serving.
-
5
Apply for a basic whole grain stamp if your product contains at least 8 g of whole grains. Products that contain 16 or more grams qualify for the 100-percent whole grain stamp.
-
1
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images Hemera Technologies/Photos.com/Getty Images
