Agronomic Biofortification in Se of Oryza sativa L.: Food Quality Control for Baby Food Products

Deficiency in selenium (Se) intake has been associated with the occurrence of various diseases. Rice, being the staple food for many populations, it has enormous potential to reduce this micronutrient deficit. The growing demand for efficient, bioeconomic and sustainable strategies to increase Se contents in rice is therefore justified, as it is our the study of the technical and nutritional implications inherent in its production and industrial processing for baby food products. Thus, the natural rice Se enrichment constitute an added value of its food chain and constituted the aims of our study. The technical workflow was implemented, using one commercial variety of rice (Ceres) and one advanced line of INIAV National Rice Genetic Improvement Program (OP 1505). Five Se concentrations (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100g Se.ha−1) were tested in the forms of sodium selenate and selenite by foliar application. After grain harvesting, the application of Se showed 2.0–8.4 and 1.3–12.6 fold increases in OP 1505 and Ceres, respectively. Selenium did not reveal significant changes in the size of the biofortified grains. The color of the whole and refined flours showed two peaks at 550 nm and 650 nm, with the refined flour having the highest value. Total protein increased in both cultivars when selenite was applied mainly in the Ceres cultivar. In a context of innovation, Se biofortification of both rice cultivars can be used for development of functional food products, namely baby food products.