How to Determine Whether Grain is Good or Bad

Testing grain for quality is central to commercial grain production and there are opportunities to analyse and measure grain against various parameters at different stages of the production process.

Grain quality is important for farmers, food producers and, ultimately, consumers.

What Should You Test in Grain?

Key things to test for in grain include:

  • Moisture

  • Protein

  • Specific weight

  • Mycotoxins

  • Oil content

  • Falling number.

These various elements in grain will have an impact on its quality, its marketability and its overall value as a product.

Moisture content is a major concern. It affects the sale weight of grain and determines whether it can be stored in the long term.

Protein is important because food manufacturers and processors will be looking for a specific quality of grain for their products. If a farmer's grain yield fails to match these requirements, they can find their crop rejected or fetching lower prices.

The specific weight is a standard, widely understood and accepted measure of grain quality. It is an indicator of the density of grain, and as with protein, producers and millers will have specific weight requirements for the grains they buy. Testing for nitrogen in some grains may be necessary as levels that are too high can lead to a lower specific weight.

Testing for mycotoxins is vital, as these naturally occurring toxins can impact crop production, contaminating crops during harvesting, drying and storage. Plus, they pose a risk further up the food chain, if animals eat contaminated feed.

Oil content is an essential parameter for various seed crops, including oilseed, including testing the purity of oil.

The falling number (FN) test measures alpha-amylase (AA) enzyme activity and levels. Levels of AA activity can determine whether specific grains are suitable for different baked products. This is the original method for testing the suitability of wheat for bread-making.

How Should You Inspect Grain for Quality Analysis?

There are various inspection methods and tools for monitoring grain quality. Modern grain inspection systems use innovative magnification technology.

Tagarno inspection systems provide magnification up to 320 times, with multi-viewer options and high-definition live imaging.

This enables close-up viewing and assessment of crops for seed or grain quality.

Inspection systems can help detect contaminants and identify sprouted or damaged grains.

What are the Key Grain Testing Methods and Tools?

Key grain testing methods include:

  • Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy – using infrared energy and the electromagnetic spectrum to analyse grain properties

  • Unified Grain Moisture Algorithm (UGMA) – a grain moisture-measuring method

  • Lateral flow testing – for detecting the presence of Mycotoxins in grain samples

  • Hagberg falling number (HFN) – a popular and internationally-standardised method for measuring alpha-amylase enzyme activity in grains.

There’s a range of specialist grain testing equipment that gives farmers and producers the capability to test for grain quality at different stages in the production cycle.

Various specialists testing tools are highly suitable for on-farm testing, such as handheld moisture and protein meters.

Other analysis equipment is designed for in-line use, enabling you to integrate it into process control systems.

Here are examples of advanced grain testing methods, for use on the farm, in the field, on production lines and in the laboratory.

  • GrainSense is a highly portable means for testing moisture, protein and nitrogen levels in grain. The instrument is user-friendly and ideal for gathering in-field data, providing laboratory levels of accuracy.

  • The Perten AM 5200 moisture meter is a larger model but highly adaptable, penetrating deep into samples for rapid analysis. It uses the Unified Grain Moisture Algorithm (UGMA) for stable, accurate and repeatable results.

  • Like the GrainSense portable moisture meter, the Perten IM9500 wholegrain analyser uses near infrared (NIR) technology. This instrument will measure wholegrain and oilseed for moisture, protein and oil.

  • Charm Mycotoxin test strips are lateral flow tests that provide rapid results when testing cereal grains, seeds and barley for different mycotoxins, including aflatoxin and Vomitoxin.

  • The Perten Falling Number 1000 tests for alpha-amylase activity in grains and seeds. This enzyme activity can increase in wet harvests, so farmers and producers need to monitor levels for quality control and assurance.

Which Testing Methods Should You Use?

Grain quality testing and analysis come in various forms, using different methods and technologies.

These methods are ideal for testing at different parts of the production process:

  • Growing

  • Harvesting

  • Storage

  • Distribution

  • Food production.

For more information about our full range of grain testing instruments, please contact us.

Rachael Smith