Mills’ View On Bulk Storage

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29952, 13 October 1962, Page 6

Mills’ View On Bulk Storage

With wheat sowings this year between 200,000 and 210,000 acres and favourable spring conditions, it is likely there will be a sharp increase in the harvest A move has been made to conserve overseas expenditure on new wheat sacks by using a proportion of one-shot sacks and there will probably be an increase In the amount of wheat harvested in bulk.

After the lower yields last season an increased harvest may cause some problems, particularly with bulk grain. With a few exceptions, millers have made no moves to increase their bulk facilities. In Christchurch two of the large mills consider their existing bulk reception rates are adequate in relation to storage.

Millers generally have been reluctant to increase their bulk storage for several reasons. Some say they are waiting to see the findings of the present inquiry into the industry on storage increments, and others consider that the farmer harvesting in bulk should be prepared to store his wheat. The more wheat received at the time of harvest is a further aggravation of transport demands at that time. Farmers would do their industry a service by alleviating this pressure on transport by storing and spreading their deliveries, they say. One miller said that farmers could no longer expect mills to take all their wheat direct from the paddock. No mill had sufficient storage for its year’s requirements. Overseas mills considered three months’ storage was an economic figure. Millers emphasised the vital importance of testing all bulk wheat before it was accepted for delivery. A preliminary sample taken

before harvesting began did not necessarily indicate toe over-all quality of the cropFarmers considering bulk harvesting should regard storage as an integral part of their programme. Doing this enabled them to get their harvest quickly under cover, there was ample time to have the wheat tested and, having got the wheat stored they could hold it for the increment or spread their deliveries.

This would be of particular advantage to mills when deliveries from bag harvesting were held up because of weather. Trucks could be diverted to bulk deliveries and an even flow of wheat into the mills could be maintained.

There was, however, a need tor farmers harvesting and storing in bulk to understand the problems involved in wheat storage, millers said. With the high temperatures of the wheat at harvest time there could be deterioration in quality through sweating and decomposition when temperatures grew colder in the autumn.

Thorough cooling of the grain was necessary and it was necessary to be able to

turn the stored grain over at least once every two months. This prevented hot spots developing and sprouting. One. miller said that in a number of cases he had seen wheat of good milling quality put into farmers’ stores at hairvest and left there for several months without attention by which time it was barely fit for feed purposes and totally unacceptable for milling. He considered the farmer should have an extra silo of sufficient size to enable the other silos to be turned over in turn. One of the reasons millers have been reluctant to build large bulk stores is the high capital cost involved—considerably more than for conventional sack stores—and their utilisation. Much of the storage capacity would be wasted for a big part of the year if they aimed to store all their requirements, whereas a farmer with a smaller and relatively cheaper bulk store would probably find some other use for it w’hile it was empty. Another factor, too. is probably the amount of money which would be required if all the year’s requirements were bought within two months.