Growing up, we often heard adults chatting about the differences between urban and rural life. They say that people in the cities live comfortably and receive a fixed monthly salary, while people in the countryside do not have such security. They can only rely on the first grain after the harvest in exchange for a meager income. Despite this, people in the countryside can enjoy fresh rice every year, while people in the city can only eat "old" rice that has been stored for a long time. I didn't think much of the difference at the time, but when I really got into the rice mill and the rice milling industry, I came to understand the huge difference between new, old and fresh rice.
There is a clear difference in taste between new rice and old rice. In addition to the variety of rice that affects the taste of rice, the freshness of rice can also have a big impact. Rice can be divided into fresh rice and aged rice according to the degree of freshness. The rice that was harvested that year was processed was called new rice. For example, rice harvested from October 2018 to September 2019 after the annual rice is ripened in October is called new rice. However, new rice is not the same as fresh rice, and only rice that has just been shelled and processed can be called fresh rice. In fact, rice has a shelf life of only 30 days, and once it is dehulled, the rice will gradually oxidize, changing from fresh to stale and even inedible. Therefore, the best time to taste fresh rice is within 30 days of the husk.
Although new rice and aged rice that is no older than 3 years old can still be eaten if stored properly, aged rice that is older than 3 years old is prone to aflatoxin, a substance that may cause cancer if consumed for a long time, so try to stay away from it. If you want to taste delicious fresh rice, the most convenient way is to have a home embryo rice machine, so that you can buy the rice harvested that year from the farmer and eat it now. And for the residents of the community where the germ live rice machine has been settled, they are also blessed to be able to buy freshly milled germ "live" rice at their doorstep.