“Silobag”: evaluation of a new technique for temporary storage of wheat in the field.

RICARDO BARTOSIK; JUAN RODRIGUEZ; HECTOR MALINARICH; DIRK MAIER

York, Inglaterra

Conferencia; 8th International Working Conference on Stored Product Protection; 2002

. During the last five years, Argentine farmers have been facing the problem of shortage of storage capacity and high cost of sending grain to the elevator during the harvest. In order to reduce cost and get some extra profit through grain segregation, farmers in increasing numbers are choosing to store grain in the field in plastic bags of 2.74 meters diameter and 67 meters long (around 200 tons of grain). During 2001 more than 1.5 million tons of corn, soybeans and wheat were stored in these plastic bags, and it is expected in the coming years that this number will increase to around 7 million tons. In January 2001 (summer) two plastic bags were filled with wheat at 12.5% and 16.4% average moisture content. The grain was stored in the field for six months up to June (winter). Temperature, moisture content, test weight, germination test, baking quality, CO2 concentration, and insect activity were the main evaluation parameters. Wheat stored at 12.5% moisture content had no deleterious effect in any of the quality parameters after six months of storage. Wheat stored at 16.4% moisture content was negatively affected with respect to baking quality and seed viability. There was no increase of the grain temperature due to self heating and no insect activity was detected during the storage period.