Grain Damage Shows in Some Areas
 

OMAHA (DTN) -- Elevator managers across Iowa and Illinois are concerned about how well last fall's corn is storing on the farm, and some producers are finding problems as they core bins to check on conditions.

One example: Iowa producer Ben Riensche said he had a 10,000-bushel bin with corn that went into storage in November and was well aerated, but the three sump doors had stopped flowing. Earlier this week, his crew used the local co-op's grain vacuum to clean out the bin, and found "a big chunk of fines from this low-test-weight, easily-cracking crop had heated up in the center of the bin. Had we not been moving physical grain until spring, I'm sure that I would have had 400 bushels of 'manure' rather than hot fines that we could blend out," Riensche said.

There's no accurate measure of how many bins are in this situation. According to a recent DTN online poll, most farmers feel grain is in good shape so far. Of farmers with corn stored on-farm, 76 percent said grain was in good condition, though of that group, 17 percent (or 13 percent of all respondents) said they were still drying grain. Another 17 percent of the total respondents had found hot spots or were expecting minor mold damage; 6 percent expect major grain loss.

Grain merchandisers contacted by DTN all said they are urging producers to keep a close eye on stored grain.

A merchandiser at a co-op in northeast Iowa said she estimates 75 percent of producers in her area are finding problems. It could be a "nightmare all the way through the marketing year," as damaged corn comes to town and elevators have to find ways to blend the lower quality grain.

In southeast Iowa, at Farmers Co-op in Ainsworth, Joni Sandburg said problems are widespread. She said, "If [producers] don't watch these bins and keep them moving, there will be a big train wreck" ahead, as they encounter big discounts or even have loads rejected for damage.

At Lamoni, Iowa's South Central Co-op, Vince Schaller said corn in his area went in the bin in less-than-ideal condition; but with the weather they've had, "I don't know that they've cored bins to see what they've got. The first few seem OK." South-central Iowa had problems with wet corn in the 2008/09 crop, Schaller said, so he hopes producers there may already know how to handle the wetter grain.

Up in the northwestern part of the state, things may be a little less worrisome, but John Becker at Craig Farmers Co-op said light test weights and wet corn are still problematic, and he expects more corn will be coming in more quickly this spring.

At The Andersons in Champaign, Ill., merchandiser Greg Johnson said most of the corn in his area went into storage at 20 percent or higher moisture. "Producers who have dryers are in OK shape, but anyone with air-only has to be concerned."

Producers who don't have dryers will have to move that wet corn in the next few months, Johnson said, and that could mean more corn coming in than normal in that earlier timeframe.

On the other hand, those who have corn that will stay in condition into the spring and summer may find some better basis bids, Johnson said.

For producers concerned about monitoring their bins, DTN Agronomist Dan Davidson said, "The most important thing is to monitor humidity, temperature and condition. And the best thing to do is to take out bin cores which are most at risk and break the seal created by the fines to improve aeration.

"If mold is apparent, either coming out of a field or bin, test moldy grain after it has been dried for the full range of toxins, especially if the corn overheated while in storage."

Charles Hurburgh, agricultural engineer and grain storage expert at Iowa State University, offers these sets of suggestions depending on whether you feed or market your grain.

"If you feed your own corn: try not to feed moldy corn, do not mix moldy and clean corn in the same bin, dry and sell the moldy corn quickly, take a sample to a laboratory for testing, know the guidelines for feeding contaminated grain, how to blend and maximum inclusion rates and be careful of the additive effects of feeding distillers grain." Distillers grains can concentrate toxins threefold, he said.

Hurburgh said the maximum inclusion rates for livestock rations depend on the animal. He suggests working with a veterinarian or nutritionist when feeding contaminated corn to livestock.

Hurburgh said if stored corn is below 20 percent moisture, natural-air and low-temperature drying can normally handle it into winter, though growers should plan to move that grain during the winter or dry it further before spring.

Corn stored at moisture levels higher than 20 percent will have to be dried further, he said. "It should not be in piles or other places that are hard to aerate and complicated to pick up. Maintain continuous airflow, and steadily move this corn to heated-air drying regardless of the logistics required to do so."

On Davidson's farm, he has 25,000 to 30,000 bushels of corn, some in sealed bags and some in bins, at around 20 percent. "I am going to follow Hurburgh's advice and start moving that corn by first drying it and then moving it to market and try to get it all done before the spring warm-up begins," Davidson said.

Hurburgh also advises to check grain often to see if it is noticeably heating and crusting and needs to be moved or turned. "Remove the center core of bins and re-level. Be able to monitor temperature and progressively drop the temperature as the outside air temperatures fall. All grain should get to 35 degrees Fahrenheit or lower; it is OK to freeze corn as long the grain is clean so that chunks do not form."

Cold grain in bins will create condensation in the spring. That means putting headspace ventilation fans at the top of the bin to pull out moist air, Hurburgh said.

"Expect to lose some of this corn to mold through both physical shrink and damaged kernels if you cannot dry it quickly," said Hurburgh. "Wet corn in piles and bunkers is especially high risk."