TAIYUAN, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Wheat is no longer a color name in China. Rubbing off the skin from rippling wheat in northern China's Yellow River basin, the kernels boast a variety of colors from black, green and blue, to red and purple.

The grains waiting for harvest in the 20-hectare colored wheat field in the city of Yuncheng in Shanxi Province are a trial group of wheat planted in a seed breeding program.

The colors of the new varieties are rich in various elements such as protein, amino acids and essential minor elements for the human body, said Song Yu, an associate researcher of the Wheat Crop Research Office of the Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

The provincial academy developed the seeds through hybrid breeding with other herbs. The colorful wheat breeds can be used in food, medicine, beauty and other industries, he said.

"The five new varieties of colored wheat were all developed from natural varieties through the team's selection and hybridization research. It has nothing to do with gene modification," Song said.

He said each new wheat breed takes about 10 years of hybrid planting and seed selection.

Song said the yields of the new wheat breeds are higher than the amount of ordinary wheat, and they are also resistant to pests and taste good.

Three of the new breeds, namely Yunhei-14207, Yunhei-161 and Yunnuo-32, got the provincial approval for large-scale planting last year, he said.

"The colored wheat has a more developed root system and wider leaf surfaces, resulting in an increased yield of 40 to 50 kg per mu (a unit area widely used in China equal to about 0.067 ha)," said Chang Haibin, a village head.

Chang said the price of colored wheat is also higher so that the farmers' incomes are expected to rise as well.