Wheat is the most important cereal crop in the world and ubiquitous in the food culture of North America and many other regions of the world. Bread, pasta, bagels, crackers, cakes, and muffins just begin to describe the list of foods made with this grain.

The health benefits of wheat depend entirely on the form in which you eat it. These benefits will be few if you select wheat that has been processed into 60% extraction, bleached white flour. 60% extraction-the standard for most wheat products in the United States, including breads, noodles and pastas, baked goods like rolls or biscuits, and cookies-means that 40% of the original wheat grain was removed, and only 60% is left. Unfortunately, the 40% that gets removed includes the bran and the germ of the wheat grain-its most nutrient-rich parts. In the process of making 60% extraction flour, over half of the vitamin B1, B2, B3, E, folic acid, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, iron, and fiber are lost.

The term wheat berry is used to describe a whole and unprocessed kernel of wheat. It has only been stripped of the inedible outer hull, leaving all of its many beneficial vitamins and minerals in tact.

A wheat berry is comprised of all three parts of the grain; the germ (or seed), the bran, and the endosperm.

The refining process removes the germ and bran layers leaving behind the endosperm. Although there are still trace amounts of vitamins and minerals, along with protein and carbohydrates found in the endosperm, it is the least nutritious part of the grain. Consuming wheat berries in their whole state provides the body with higher concentrations of vitamins A, E, B1, B2, B3, magnesium, phosphorous, selenium, zinc, and iron. Since milling removes the bran layer of the grain, there is little to no fibre left after it has been refined. When consumed whole, wheat berries are an excellent source of dietary fibre.