Grower participation needed in new grain drying study focusing on minimizing postharvest losses of grains.
Lethbridge College requires growers to participate in a new AFC funded project. The project aims to develop more efficient wheat storage and handling guidelines for Alberta’s climatic conditions. This study focuses on energy efficiency, timely and uniform drying, and the optimum milling and baking quality of dried wheat.
Participants need on-farm grain drying and storage capacity for in-bin air drying, in-bin drying with heater, and high temperature drying. This study wants to look at 20,000-50,000 bu bins equipped with temperature and moisture monitoringwith automated fan and heater control. However, anyone interested in participating can contact Dr. Singh.
Growers willing to automate their bins for this study will receive a 20% discount on monitoring cables and control systems from project partner OPIsystems based in Calgary.
Lethbridge College will conduct the drying experiments, inspect bins, collect grain samples for quality testing, ensure grain quality and safety, and gather the bin data from participants.
In order to incorporate regional variability in post harvest climatic conditions and develop region-based grain storage and handling guidelines, on-farm grain drying trials will be conducted in South, Central, North East, North West, and Peace regions in Alberta. Please contact Project Lead Dr. Chandra Singh, 587-899-8405, for more details.
