Feed & Additive Magazine Issue 4 May 2021

ISSUE FOCUS 52 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE May 2021 from 20 m³ up 25,000 m³, approx. 18,750 tons. • Economical, easy-assembly and easy-mainte- nance. Less investment required in civil works and maintenance is almost non-existing. • Better post-harvest management for less losses and quality improvements, due to humidity control, temperature control and ventilation. • Effective protection against weather, rodents and insects. • Long storage periods allowed. • Automatic loading and unloading. • High handling speed and transport capacity, in- creasing port installations improvement. • Bulk handling materials allowed. • Less cost and more capacity. • Less labor cost and resources. Definitely, storing in metallic silos improves cor- rect grain preservation. Yet, the work has just start- ed, as the manager should consider some other fac- tors that require management for successful grain storage: These are temperature, humidity and in- sects, which are in turn intertwined. Steel silos were developed alongside with the mechanisms to man- age these factors, as a valid and proven option effec- tive in protecting stored grains, while underpinning protection from pests, improving food security, em- powering smallholder farmers, enhancing income opportunities and job creation, and safeguarding the agro-ecosystems. Generation of organisms: pests are one of the main threats to stored grains, and these depend on a large extent on humidity and temperature. To this, ventilation has become the main tool to defend your grains. It requires a multifaceted ap- proach to management, as it requires a modulation between humidity and temperature both inside and outside of the silo. A sound ventilation system will attain the right conditions of temperature and humidity for the grain considering the conditions outside of the silo. To put it simply, ventilation brings air form the outside, with the right moisture and temperature conditions, to keep and maintain the grain inside to our target of humidity and temperature for long term storage. “Definitely, storing in metallic silos improves a correct grain preservation. Yet, the work has just started, as the manager should consider some other factors that require management for a successful grain storage: These are temperature, humidity and insects, which are in turn intertwined.”