Hulzen

Hulzen is a Dutch noun meaning shells, hulls, or husks. In Dutch-language science and agriculture, hulzen denotes the outer covering of seeds, fruits, or cereals, and more generally any protective outer casing. The term is used for both the natural husk surrounding a seed and the external shell encountered in processed products. Hulzen can refer to plant-derived coverings as well as manufactured casings.

Hulzen derives from the Dutch word huls, related to German Hülse and English hull, all sharing the sense of an outer covering or shell.

In cereal production, hulzen are the husks that must often be removed during milling or processing. The removal, dehulling, yields edible kernels and produces byproducts such as hulls that can be used as animal feed or fiber.

Examples include barley, oats, and wheat hulls; rice husks are discussed in rice processing; in horticulture, outer shells of various fruits and seeds may be referred to as hulzen in Dutch texts.

Related terms include husk, hull (botany), dehulling, and pericarp. Hulzen is primarily encountered in Dutch-language contexts, but can appear in multilingual or technical discussions of seed processing, milling, and agriculture when Dutch terminology is used or translated.