Grain Inspectors "Make the Grade" with Digital Media

From USDA:

Posted by Shane Rumsey, Grain Marketing Specialist, FGIS - National Grain Center, GIPSA, on January 16, 2015 at 11:00 AM

Inspector comparing a kernel of corn to the reference for mold damage.

Most consumers may not realize it, but in many ways grain inspection has not changed much over the years.  Even though there are sophisticated scientific tests today to measure moisture, oil, protein and several other intrinsic qualities of grain, the human eye still carries the most weight when judging a grain sample for classification and grade.

To ensure consistency and uniformity throughout the grading process, individual graders need lasting references.  Digital media is an important tool used to reduce variability and maintain consistency.

The Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) library of more than 200 printed Visual Reference Images (VRI) represent grading delineations for grains, oil seeds, pulses and rice, and serve as the foundation for the National Inspection System’s Subjective Quality Control Program.

Official grain inspectors across the U.S. use these prints. But they are not the only customers.  Anyone interested in or affiliated with the production, handling or buying of grain anywhere in the world will benefit from the informational products GIPSA offers.

For those in the private sector and general public, an online version of the Visual Reference Library is available through the GIPSA website.  The same set of VRI images and descriptive text used by official grain inspection, plus an additional 180 VRI, illustrating Insects Injurious to Stored Grain, Commodity Type Samples and Other Factors are available for review. The VRI are also offered in eBook versions for iOS, Android, and Kindle.

Internet distribution has also opened the door to other avenues for training and informative content of interest to the grain industry.  70 Interactive eLearning courses covering topics such as Grain Quality and Marketing, Grain Grading, Damage Identification and Grain Grading Study Questions are available on GIPSA’s Education and Outreachpage.  They are designed to help inspectors or anyone interested in furthering their knowledge or sharpening their inspection skills.

GIPSA also creates informative video content.  Whether discussing The U.S. Grain Standards Act of 1916, an overview of the Master Scale Program, or how to perform the Wheat Bleaching Procedure to determine germ damage, a broad range of topics can be found in the Video Library page. Videos are streamed directly from the library or can be downloaded, giving viewers the option to watch programs offline.

GIPSA’s mission is to “help facilitate the marketing of U.S. grain”.  Expanding knowledge of grain inspection through the use of digital media tools is a key part of accomplishing that mission.

Following the Rails: USDA Tracks Agricultural Exports Across the Border

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Bruce Blanton, Director of Transportation Services Division, Agricultural Marketing Service, on April 24, 2014 at 11:45 AM

Until recently, there was no readily-available public data showing the entry points of U.S. agricultural exports to Mexico, modes of transportation, or how product were used at their final destination. Now, a USDA partnership with Texas A&M scientists provides insight into the movement of products from the U.S. to Mexico. Photo by Michael Matalis.

Driving down a rural road, admiring the expansive fields of corn and soybeans, I stopped at a rail crossing to wait for what seemed like an endless train of cars filled with grain.  My idle mind wondered, where are all those tons of grain headed, where was its final destination?  For anyone else, it may just be curiosity. But for me and those who work in my division within USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), it’s our job to answer those questions.

We understand that for stakeholders within the agricultural industry—farmers, grain mill operators, shippers and exporters—the answers are critical.  Sound business decisions require knowledge about what is happening with the transportation of agricultural products, both in the domestic and international marketplace.

The past 5 years have seen record agricultural exports, and expanding those market opportunities for American exports is vital to the continued success of our farmers, ranchers, and agricultural businesses.  Mexico is one of largest recipients of U.S. agricultural exports, including an average of 22.2 million metric tons (mmt) of U.S. grains, oilseeds, and related products per year from 2008 to 2012.  The average annual value of those exports to Mexico is $7.3 billion.  This continued trade growth has prompted interest in how these products are transported throughout Mexico.

Until recently, there was no readily-available public data showing the entry points of U.S. agricultural exports to Mexico, modes of transportation, or how product were used at their final destination.  That’s why AMS partnered with Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Transportation Institute scientists to track U.S. grain, oilseed and related product exports in Mexico. Now agricultural businesses can find a summary of the study on movements of these products in Tracking U.S. Grain, Oilseed and Related Product Exports in Mexico (Summary (.pdf) or Full Report (.pdf).

AMS has been gathering agricultural transportation data for decades.  It produces a wide array of publications that are available to everyone on its agricultural transportation website, including Study of Rural Transportation Issues that is currently being updated.  The publications include on-going research and analysis allowing researchers, growers, distributors, and exporters to determine trends, calculate projections, and make informed decisions.  Much of the data, including prices, deliveries, movements, sales, and freight rates, is available through market reports, such as the weekly Grain Transportation Report issued every Thursday.

Answering the question of how American agricultural products are transported to market is important.  AMS provides data on the four major transportation modes– trucking, railroads, barges, and ocean vessels– used to move food from farms to our tables and to ports for export.

That train did finally clear the rail crossing, and I continued on my journey—and so did all those cars full of grain.