grains

Grain dust explosions are a recurring hazard for grain handlers and processors, said a Purdue report on Tuesday, with nine explosions during 2022, above the 10-year average of 7.8 explosions. But for the first time since 2015, there were no deaths.

While U.S. farmers spent several years in the doldrums, agriculture in the rest of the world “appears to be in a sustained period of prosperity dating to the early 2000s,” said agricultural economist Carl Zulauf of Ohio State University. Growers overseas have steadily expanded the amount of …

Prices of wheat and corn — among other agricultural products — are as low this year as they’ve been since 2014. But despite falling prices and an oversupply of the commodities, farmers continue producing grains at record-breaking rates, reports the Wall Street Journal.

The Bread Lab, a research institution at Washington State University that focuses on local grains, was awarded a $1.5-million endowment so that it can further its work breeding grains adapted to organic farming practices, Clif Bar announced.

Iowa is best known as the top corn-producing state in the nation, but a small and determined group of farmers is trying to chip away at that reputation by bringing back small grains like rye, oats, and triticale, Twilight Greenaway reports in FERN’s latest story, published in collaboration with Yale Environment 360.

A first-of-its-kind study lays out, on a county-by-county basis, the environmental impact of growing corn in the United States, offering the industry an unprecedented tool for improving sustainability along its supply chain.

Although the world will harvest the third-largest grain crop ever in 2017/18 — only 4 percent smaller than the record set last season — the global grain inventory will decline for the first time in five years, forecasts the International Grains Council.

The impact of drought was readily spotted during the first day of the annual tour of the spring wheat crop, with wheat standing shorter than normal — barely knee-high in some fields, says Reuters. All the same, the yield per acre is higher than expected for a crop that is below average.

Sub-Saharan Africa will likely need to boost food imports or expand its farmland if it is going to feed a population expected to increase 2.5-fold by 2050, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The other option – increasing yields on current farmland to reach self-sufficiency – should be pursued but is likely to fall short.

The global stockpile of grain will swell by 5 percent during 2016/17 because farmers are growing grain faster than the world can consume it, says the International Grains Council. "Grains inventories in the major exporters are predicted to grow to a seven-year high, while those in China could reach 200 million tons for the first time in 17 years," says the monthly IGC Grain Market Report.

Ruling that its domestic producers have been "substantially" harmed, China's Commerce Ministry announced anti-subsidy duties of 10-10.7 percent on imports of distillers dried grains, an ethanol co-product used as livestock feed, from the United States beginning on Friday, said Xinhua.

The agricultural arm of Saudi Arabia's state-owned Public Investment Fund is now the largest private investor in grain handler G3 Canada, the descendant of the Canadian Wheat Board, says Reuters.

The popularity of artisanal bakeries and craft brewers has led to a scramble for high-quality grain, says Eater. At the moment, distilleries have fatter wallets and are steadier customers than bakers . "Is there enough grain to go around?"

It's sorghum, one of the major grain crops of the world yet eclipsed in the United States by the expanding range of corn and soybeans. In Africa and parts of Asia, sorghum is a food crop but in the U.S. market, it is primarily used in livestock rations and as an ethanol feedstock, says the Whole Grains Council. It's gaining some recognition as a gluten-free grain that can substitute for wheat flour in many recipes - muffins, pizza, cakes and casseroles are examples.

The Supplemental Coverage Option, created by the 2014 farm law as a cushion against low prices and poor yields, will be offered on eight widely planted crops for harvest next year, said the Agriculture Department. SCO will be available for corn, cotton, grain sorghum, rice, soybeans, spring barley, spring wheat, and winter wheat in many areas.

Record yields will result in record large US corn and soybean crops, USDA said at its Outlook Forum, based on current commodity prices, which affect plantings, and on normal weather.