It is rather difficult to classify and to make clear distinctions among various types of modified starches. Classification in this article was made according to the ways they are manufact ured, and a history of modified starch in Japan was described by following its applications in wide range of industries. It has been only 70 years since modified starch first appeared in Japanese market . Before World War II(1938), modified starch was mainly used in textile industry, as a paste or a binder for sizing and printing. During the period from 1940 to 1947, scarcity of food put a strict regulation on starch to be produced and its production decreased to a marked extent . In 1950's, textile industry entered into a new era of synthetic fabrics and, accordingly, synthetic resins such as PVA, acrylic resin, were used in place of starch for the most part, and applications of modified starch had shifted to paper and food industries . In 1960's, corn starch manufacturers began to enter modified starch business and their products were well-received especially in paper industry . Al so at this time, alpha-starch found its applicability in mixed eel feed . Modified starch industry went through a modernization period about twenty years ago and more sophisticated methods are now available for modification of starch . According to the classification, mainly dextrine and starch ester for starch produced by dry process, oxidized starch, acid-treated starch, and low D. S. starch derivative for wet process, and alpha-starch are taken up, and by following their applications and manufacturing methods at different period of time, the history of modified starch is described.

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