The Global Miller: July 2015

July 31, 2015

31/07/2015: SOLIDS 2015 sets new exhibitor record

Even before it's opening, this trade show's 7th edition indicates outstanding growth

Four months before the expert trade show for granules, powders and solids technologies is scheduled to open, 425 companies have already booked – nearly 10 percent more than last year. Halls 4, 5 and 6 in Dortmund are already sold out; show organiser Easyfairs is expanding the show into Hall 7.

http://www.easyfairs.com/events_216/schuettgut-recycling-technik-2015_62604/schuettgut-2015_62607/

SOLIDS will take place on 4 & 5 November 2015 in the Messe Westfalenhallen Dortmund. The 7th edition will again be complemented by Recycling-Technik Dortmund 2015, the recycling and environment technologies show, as well as the Urban Mining conference.

For the first time in the show's history it will cover four exhibition halls. The newly-opened Hall 7 will be devoted thematically to suppliers of recycling and solids technology: crushing machinery, packaging and storage systems, sorting and conveying machinery, shredders and crushing equipment, and separation and processing technologies for recyclable materials.

"This strong resonance among the exhibitors really confirms the concept behind SOLIDS as a straightforward, two-day show focused on innovations and doing business; more than ever, this show fulfils a real need on both sides of the supply-demand equation," says Daniel Eisele, Event Director for Easyfairs.

"For many companies, this format works exceptionally well for presenting products, discussing technical solutions with trade visitors and making new or solidifying existing business contacts."

In total, the show organiser expects over 450 exhibitors at the event in November, covering the entire spectrum of process engineering in solids and recycling technologies. 75 percent of the exhibitors from 2014 have already re-booked for the upcoming show. In addition, a number of new enterprises have joined their ranks, including:

- Ambros Schmelzer, B&F Metallbautechnik, Dustcontrol, Erhard Muhr, Eriez Europe, F&D Wägetechnik-Waagenbau, HSM, Intensiv-Filter, Kloska Group, Köllemann, Komptech, Mahle Industriefiltration, Orbinox, Otto Ganter, Schreier Maschinen+Apparatebau, ReSiTec, RMS, Rosenbauer International, Sigma Maschinenbau, steute Schaltgeräte, Tedima, Stokkermill, Sympatec, Vautid, Wrights Recycling Machinery and many more.

In addition to the exhibition, a rich show programme will offer more than 100 lectures taking place in open forums, the so-called 'InnovationCenters' and 'SolutionCenters'.

In-depth seminars will also be held within the framework of two expert conferences running in parallel with the exhibition: the second German Fire and Explosion Protection Congress and the sixth Urban Mining Congress.

Cooperation partners of this year's show are Martin Engineering GmbH, Rema Tip Top West GmbH, Rembe GmbH Safety & Control, SEW-Eurodrive GmbH and Welding Alloys Deutschland GmbH.

31/07/2015: Scientists discover new GMO rice that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions

(As reported by Guneet Bhatia on www.ibtimes.com  )

Even though rice is the staple food of a majority of the world's population, it has also led to an increase in atmospheric methane, a greenhouse gas. In an attempt to provide a solution to the problem, an international team of scientists has created a new variety of genetically modified rice that can help reduce the methane emissions from rice paddies.

A team of scientists from the US Department of Energy (DOE), Sweden's University of Agricultural Sciences, and China's Hunan Agricultural University and Fujian Academy collaborated develop the GMO rice by introducing a new gene.

The researchers claim that cultivation of the new variety will produce rice paddies that yield no methane!

During development of the genetically modified rice, named SUSIBA2, the researchers introduced a single barley gene into the genome of the common rice.

According to the researchers, the resultant rice starves off methane-producing bacteria in the soil. Therefore, when grown, it is able to better feed its leaves, stems and grains, resulting in a superior-quality rice variety.

Read more HERE.

July 30, 2015

30/07/2015: Latest Industrial Auctions

11th of August: Online auction inventory (cooling, doors, hygiene equipment) former meat processor Verba Vlees BV in Scherpenzeel (NL)

http://industrial-auctions.com/online-auction-inventory/128/en

Viewing day
10th of August
From 9:00 till 13:00 hrs
Address:
Holleweg 18
3925 LW Scherpenzeel (NL)

18th of August: Online auction food processing machinery, bakery and catering equipment in Oirschot (NL)

http://industrial-auctions.com/online-auction-food-processing/126/en

Viewing day
17th of August
From 9:00 till 17:00 hrs
Address:
De Stad 10
5688 NX Oirschot (NL)

26th of August: Online auction fish and meat processing machinery in Urk (NL)

http://industrial-auctions.com/online-auction-fish-and-meat/129/en

Viewing day
25th of August
From 10:00 till 15:00 hrs
Address:
Hoornse Hop 6
8321 WX Urk (NL)

1st of September: Online auction machinery and inventory former meat processing factory in Gelsenkirchen (DE)

http://industrial-auctions.com/online-auction-machinery-and/127/en

Viewing days
26th of August (From 9:00 till 16:00 hrs)
27th of August (From 9:00 till 13:00 hrs)
Address:
Moorkampstrasse 12
45883 Gelsenkirchen (DE)

23rd of September: Online auction machinery and inventory for the fish processing industry due to outsourcing production Haasnoot Vis in Katwijk ZH (NL)

http://industrial-auctions.com/online-auction-machinery-and/131/en

Viewing day
21st of September
From 9:00 till 15:00 hrs
Address:
Rijnlandkade 1
2222 AE Katwijk ZH (NL)

30/07/2015: AFIA honors ruminant and non-ruminant experts with annual awards

Left to right: Mike Tokach excitedly receives the Non-ruminant Animal Nutrition Award from Justin Bundy, Bill Barr & Company, during ASAS-ADSA Joint Annual Meeting

Mike Tokach, PhD, a professor and state leader of Extension at Kansas State University, and Galen Erickson, PhD, an animal science professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, were honored earlier this month for their professional achievements by the American Feed Industry Association and American Society of Animal Science (ASAS).

Justin Bundy, PhD, of Bill Barr & Company, on behalf of AFIA, awarded Professor Tokach the Non-ruminant Animal Nutrition Award during the ASAS-American Dairy Science Association Joint Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida. Professor Tokach focuses primarily on swine nutrition research and relaying his data to swine producers.

"With Mike's experience growing up on a livestock farm and his position with the Extension, he is able to connect on a first-hand basis with swine producers and help assess their various issues and find resolutions," said Richard Sellers, AFIA senior vice president of legislative and regulatory affairs.

More than US$8 million in grants and gifts to Kansas State University have been generated to support swine nutrition efforts under the advisement of Professor Tokach and his colleagues. In 2005, Professor Tokach was named one of 50 people in the last 50 years who have had the greatest impact on the swine industry by National Hog Farmer. Professor Tokach has co-authored more than 200 referred journal papers, 470 abstracts, 680 Extension publications and field day reports, and six book chapters.

Professor Tokach earned his bachelor's degree in animal science at North Dakota State University, master's degree in swine nutrition at Kansas State University and doctorate in swine nutrition at the University of Minnesota.

L to R: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Professor Galen Erickson poses with Cathy Bandyk, Westway Feed Products, after being presented the Ruminant Animal Nutrition Award

Cathy Bandyk, PhD, of Westway Feed Products, on behalf of AFIA, awarded Professor Erickson the Ruminant Animal Nutrition Award during the ASAS-ADSA Joint Annual Meeting. Professor Erickson holds a post at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, teaching for more than a decade in the areas of beef feedlots and the Nebraska cattle industry.

"Thus far, he has garnered more than US$6 million in grants to support his research efforts in ruminant nutrition," said Sellers.

Among other achievements, Professor Erickson was awarded the ASAS Early Career Achievement Award in 2009, and has had more than 90 journal articles published, 276 extension reports, 269 meeting abstracts and five book chapters.

Professor Erickson earned his Bachelor of Science degree at Iowa State University-Ames, and Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The awards are sponsored by AFIA as part of its continuing awards program that dates back to 1948. The ruminant and non-ruminant awards were an addition to the overall awards program in 1998.

Visit the AFIA site HERE.

Profile: Norwood and Company

Norwood and Company is a small 4th generation company with many years of experience in this industry. We take great pride in our work, and although not all of our employees are blood relation, they have all become family.

Without our employees, we would not be able to operate as we do today. They work alongside us, in sometimes less than hospitable environments, to get our projects completed quickly and safely.

A big thanks to each and every one of our employees for all of the blood, sweat, and tears they put into each job we step foot on. Step back and think of everything we've accomplished together, then pat yourself on the back.

We are looking forward to what 2015 will bring.

Visit the site HERE.

30/07/2015: Jan Dijkstra receives Dairy Nutrition Research Award

Jan Dijkstra, PhD, a leader in dairy cattle nutrition research, was recognised by the American Feed Industry Association and the American Dairy Science Association (ADSA) on July 14, for his professional achievements.

L to R: Keith Klanderman, Nutriad, Inc, presents Jan Dijkstra with the Dairy Nutrition Research Award

The Dairy Nutrition Research Award was presented to Mr Dijkstra by Keith Klanderman of Nutriad, Inc, during the Joint Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, on behalf of AFIA which has sponsored the award for 68 years running. The award was established in 1948 to promote and stimulate research in dairy cattle nutrition.

Mr Dijkstra is an associate professor at the Animal Nutrition Group of Wageningen University, located in the Netherlands, and an adjunct professor at the University of Guelph, Canada, Department of Animal and Poultry Science.

"Jan's research, which focuses on modeling digestive and metabolic processes in dairy cattle and the challenges of producing environmental and cost efficient milk with regards to maintaining animal health, is a prime example of what ADSA and AFIA look for in our annual recipient," said Richard Sellers, AFIA senior vice president of legislative and regulatory affairs.

Mr Dijkstra has coedited three books and authored and coauthored more than 175 papers featured in peer-reviewed journals. Within the past five years, he has spearheaded and assisted with major grants, totaling more than US$10 million. In 2004, he became a of member of the International Advisory Committee of International Workshop on Modeling Nutrient Utilisation in Farm Animals and in 2012 became Co-chair of the Feed and Nutrition Network of the Global Research Alliance.

Mr Dijkstra received his doctorate from Wageningen University.

Visit the AFIA site HERE.

And the ADSA site HERE.

30/07/2015: Anta®Ferm MT80: In vivo results - Improved nutrient digestibility and better performance

Should you use a mycotoxin binder? Of course, says Dr Eckel – but make the right choice! Mycotoxins have been strongly implicated as agents that cause acute and chronic diseases in humans and animals. Moreover, mycotoxins in feed account for huge economic losses by negatively affecting animal health and thus decreasing animal performance. Under practical conditions no poultry feed is completely free of mycotoxins. Furthermore, no feed can be expected to contain only one mycotoxin (Devegowda and Murthy, 2005).

Multi-toxin occurrence may be one important explanation for divergences in effect-levels described in the scientific literature; where defined, purified mycotoxins are most often used in the majority of the studies. In field outbreaks, naturally contaminated feeds may contain multiple mycotoxins and thus apparently lower contamination levels of a single specific mycotoxin can be associated with more severe effects (Binder et al., 2007).

The addition of mycotoxin binders to contaminated diets has been considered the most promising dietary approach to reduce effects of mycotoxins (Galvano et al., 2001). The theory is that the binder decontaminates mycotoxins in the feed by binding them strongly enough to prevent toxic interactions with the animal’s metabolism and to prevent mycotoxin absorption across the digestive tract. Under practical conditions the choice of the right mycotoxin binder is not easy to make, and therefore it is important to compare the efficacy of different binders not only in vitro, but in vivo.

To evaluate the effect of different mycotoxin binders on several parameters day-old broiler chicks (as-hatched, Cobb 500) were allocated into 4 groups, receiving 4 different diets over a period of 36 days. In addition to a control group (without mycotoxin binder), three different mycotoxin binders with the same dosage were tested (product 1: Anta®Ferm MT80, product 2: commercial mycotoxin binder based on yeast cell walls, product 3: commercial mycotoxin binder based on mineral clay). Feed was naturally contaminated with various mycotoxins (Table 1).

Broilers fed Anta®Ferm MT80 were shown to have the highest final live weight compared to control (- 4.4 percent), product 2 (- 3 percent) and product 3 (- 1.6 percent). Furthermore daily weight gain was highest for Anta®Ferm MT80-treated broilers and lowest in the control group. Feed conversion ratio was improved compared to other treatment groups and control group.

Be aware of nutrient interactions
The interaction of various mycotoxins, but especially aflatoxin, with various nutrients has been the topic of numerous experiments. Despite a long-standing recognition of this relationship, the interaction of mycotoxins with nutrients is complex and still not fully understood. Nevertheless it is known that impaired absorption, distribution, and utilisation of nutrients of practically all nutrient classes are common during mycotoxicoses. For example, Osborne and Hamilton (1981) demonstrated that aflatoxicosis results in low activities of pancreatic trypsin, lipase and amylase in broiler chicks. These low activities were apparently due to failure of enzyme synthesis rather than specific enzyme inhibition. In a review of Schaeffer and Hamilton (1991), interactions between fat soluble vitamins, water soluble vitamins, protein, fat, fibre and a wide range of mycotoxins in different animal species were discussed.

To quantify the effect of different mycotoxin binders on nutrient digestibility, digestibility of protein and fat as well as nitrogen, phosphorous and calcium utilisation were measured. Feeding Anta®Ferm MT80 led to higher digestibility and utilisation of all analysed nutrients (Fig.1). This indicates a lower interaction between mycotoxins and nutrients due to a higher binding capacity and therefore a lower impact of mycotoxins on animal health and digestion. Fat digestibility was deteriorated in broilers receiving the product based on yeast cell walls compared to control group and both treatment groups. Improved nutrient digestibility of Anta®Ferm MT80 here is in line with improved zootechnical performance. In addition to the fact that mycotoxins interact with nutrients, mycotoxin binders are assumed to possibly reduce animal performance due to nutrient binding. This is a valid concern because unselective binders might bind a broad range of mycotoxins but also a wide variety of nutrients. In this study digestibility and utilisation of Anta®Ferm MT80 treated animals were higher compared to animals in the control group, showing that there was no nutrient binding due to the used mycotoxin binder.

Conclusion
The specific composition of Anta®Ferm MT80 was shown to be most effective compared to two other commercial mycotoxin binders, in improving animal performance and nutrient digestibility when feed is contaminated with different mycotoxins.

References
Binder, E.M.; Tan, L.M.; Chin, L.J.; Handl, J.; and Richard, J., 2007. Worldwide occurrence of mycotoxins in commodities, feeds and feed ingredients. Anim Feed Sci Tech 137: 265–282
Devegowda, G.; and Murthy, T.N.K, 2005. Mycotoxins: their effects in poultry and some practical solutions. Ed. DE Diaz, Nottingham: Nottingham University Press. pp 25-56.
Galvano, F.; Piva, A.; Ritieni, A.; and Galvano, G., 2001. Dietary strategies to counteract the effects of mycotoxins: A review. J Food Prot. 64:120-131.
Osborne, D.J.; and Hamilton, P.B., 1981. Decreased pancreatic digestive enzymes during aflatoxicosis. Poul Sci 60: 1818-1820.
Schaeffer, J.L; and Hamilton, P.B., 1991. Interactions of mycotoxins with feed ingredients. Do safe levels exist? In: Mycotoxins and Animal Foods (J.E. Smith and R.S. Henderson, eds). CRC Press, Inc., Boca Ratom, FL USA pp. 827-8
These results were presented at the PSA Annual Meeting July 27-30, 2015 in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.

For further information or advice, please contact:
Monika Korzekwa
Product Management
m.korzekwa@dr-eckel.de
02636-9749-28
Visit the Dr Eckel site HERE.

30/07/2015: 2015 Alltech mycotoxin storage analysis: Mycotoxins a growing concern for European ruminants

Mycotoxins are increasingly causing a negative impact on farms in terms of higher costs and lower productivity. Due to continuous development of moulds in storage, corn silage is now trending at high risk for mycotoxin contamination which contributes to a higher risk for total mixed rations (TMR), according to Alltech’s recent mycotoxin storage analysis for 2015. Alltech has analysed more than 800 samples of European ruminant feed from September 2014 to July 2015.

Mycotoxicosis in ruminants is often the result of exposure to multiple toxins, due to preharvest infestation of feed materials by Fusarium species as well as from postharvest contamination of stored materials. Due to multiple mycotoxins at lower levels, the damaging effects on ruminants may not always be evident by solely observing the animals.

“All mycotoxins are produced by moulds. Moulds are highly influenced by weather conditions and environmental factors. Factors that affect mycotoxin production in fermented forages include plant stress prior to harvest, packing density, moisture [and] oxygen exposure,” said Dr Max Hawkins, a nutritionist with Alltech’s Mycotoxin Management Team.

Image: paweesit

Through Alltech’s Analytical Services Laboratory, the company’s 37+® mycotoxin analysis program evaluates the change in mycotoxin numbers and levels over time from harvest through storage. By analysing the number and levels of mycotoxins present, the program can provide a Risk Equivalent Quantity (REQ) of the increase in risk from harvest to feed out.

The most prevalent mycotoxins found in corn silage include Type B Trichothecenes and Fusaric Acid. According to Dr Hawkins, corn silage in Europe is more contaminated than grass silage and appears to be representing a greater risk; therefore it is a more problematic ingredient. However, this does not indicate that grass silage is risk-free. In terms of risk for dairy and beef, both are at high risk due to presence of Type B Trichothecenes and Fusaric Acid.

REQ levels for dairy illustrate 60 percent high risk, 26 percent medium risk and almost 16 percent low risk. The average REQ for beef cattle is at moderate to high risk level. More than 83 percent of the corn silage samples are at moderate to high risk for dairy cattle. Total mixed rations (TMR) samples illustrate more than 60 percent contain at least three mycotoxins. Type B Trichothecenes, Fusaric Acid and Penicillium show significant prominence and influence dry matter intake, rumen function, milk/ meat production, gut health, low immune response and growth rate, which can affect the life time performance of dairy and beef cattle. One-third of TMR samples from European dairy and beef cattle are at high risk level.

“The TMR monthly average shows a definite increase over time originating from a low risk to well above a high risk. This is prevalent from the samples coming from Europe. The trend since February 2015 has demonstrated a much higher REQ level to cow health and performance. As we feed further into these storage forages, it is not uncommon to see storage toxins, increase in mould growth and a loss of nutrition as the summer harvest approaches,” said Dr Hawkins.

“We need to continue to monitor mycotoxin levels particularly as we enter these later stages of storage forages in grains,” Hawkins said.

Feed ingredients and TMRs need to be continually monitored, as well as cow health and performance to prevent negative economic impact on farms.

The recorded video of the 2015 European Storage Mycotoxin Analysis webinar can be found on the Alltech dairy and beef knowledge hubs.

Visit the Alltech site HERE.

30/07/2015: From the Soyatech newsroom

http://oilseedandgrain.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=4952c76442c10cb798d21bfc5&id=db7074480a&e=11e1e9f3a1

Image: B.G.Z. Olson

UniGrain expands into oat milling and processing in Western Australia
Following in the footsteps of the CBH Group, UniGrain is expanding into Western Australia’s oat processing sector with the purchase of Morton Seed and Grain’s oat milling and processing assets.

Lansing Trade Group expands Idaho grain operations
Lansing Trade Group is the latest in a string of grain companies to expand in Idaho – opening a 2 million bushel facility in American Falls.

Financial inspectors uncover US$55.2m in infringements at Ukraine’s State Food Grain Corporation
An audit of Ukraine’s State Food Grain Corporation has uncovered losses totaling US$55.2 million due to "infringements of financial discipline”.

Agronomists work to solve cause of unsettling canola 'mystery syndrome'
Agronomists in Alberta are working to unravel the cause of a ‘mystery syndrome’ occurring in canola that manifests in the plant’s reproductive tissue reverting to vegetative tissue.

http://oilseedandgrain.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=4952c76442c10cb798d21bfc5&id=6010b3d084&e=11e1e9f3a1

Image: Don McCullough

Drones could save farmers millions, says new study
A new study that quantifies the benefits of drone use in crop production indicates that corn producers are likely to reap the biggest financial rewards from aerial technology.

High rivers in Midwest continue to hamper grain shipments
High river levels in the Midwest, caused by heavy rains, continue to cause havoc for farmers and grain transport.

Organic & non-GMO forum to address critical supply chain challenges
New forum will address growing concerns by major food manufacturers and retailers over lack of sufficient suppliers of ingredients to meet increasing consumer demand for organic and non-GMO foods.

Ring-Neck Energy launches road show for S.D. Ethanol plant
The Ring-Neck Energy management team is looking to raise US$74.5 million in equity across the Midwestern United States for the project.

Don't forget about these! Click each banner to learn more and book your place:

July 29, 2015

29/07/2015: Industry in the Philippines

http://issuu.com/gfmt/docs/mag1505_w1/26

By Chris Jackson, Export Manager UK TAG

First published in Milling and Grain, May 2015

It does not seem a month since I wrote my inaugural column for MAG magazine as much has happened for our industry in the UK and for me what I thought would not be a busy month turned in to just the opposite as we strive to promote our industry globally.

Profitability is the key that drives us all, which generally means increasing outputs whilst driving down costs through innovative technology with skilled management, taking the best that the world can offer and incorporating it into our business.

A major part of my job is to find global opportunities and bring these to the attention of our industry to save your business some time in searching out potential areas for success. As an independent trade association we are often able to access breaks and new ideas and distribute these to a wide audience. We look for exhibitions and seminars that are particularly relevant to our industry where not only can we showcase our products but where we can find other companies and countries whose ideas and technology will help our industry to develop.

As I write these notes I am preparing to fly to China for the China Animal Husbandry Exhibition and Global Pig Forum. Held in probably the world’s biggest market certainly the world’s biggest pig producer with 48 percent of the world’s pigs. But a difficult market to succeed in, needing a great deal of patient understanding and a country in which developing long-term relationships is absolutely key to success.

Following on from this exhibition we are supporting Livestock Philippines where you could not hope to find a more contrasting country and culture albeit that a lot of big business is run by the ethnic Chinese population who still maintain their business sense and drive after many generations. Here, you have a country of 100,000,000 people about 40 percent of whom still work in agriculture living on some 7000 islands that make up their country contributing 20 percent of GDP.

With the country’s ever-increasing population accompanied by a progressively shrinking land space, Filipino farmers are adopting more efficient farming systems. Fortunately, through farming systems researches new techniques are continuously being developed, particularly for smallholder farmers. For example, it has been shown that by integrating livestock and fish production systems the total food protein yield and profitability from a unit area of land is significantly increased.

The Philippines has a well-developed livestock, the third largest pig population in the region following China and Vietnam. It also has a fairly-developed aquaculture industry. Yet, in spite of the profitability of integrated livestock-fish farming systems demonstrated by local researchers, very few Filipino entrepreneurs have adopted the technology.

The few entrepreneurs who have adopted integrated livestock-fish production technology will also serve to encourage farmers to venture in this farming system. With self-sufficiency in poultry a substantial pig and aquaculture industry the demand for efficient storage and milling facilities is high, without this industry none of the intensive livestock production can be maintained.

Livestock Philippines 2015 will be held in Manila from June 24-26, 2015. Hosted by the Department of Agriculture and, the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS). On show there will be, feed production management, animal health and nutrition, closed housing systems, centralised slaughtering facilities and advanced meat processing and packaging technologies. Please come and visit us there.

As we continue to look forward Indonesia will be our next country to visit in July, with 250 million people and more than 65 million with disposable incomes this is a country that we need to develop stronger trading relationships with. We will be at Indo Livestock. Look for us!

To keep up-to-date you can follow us on twitter: @AgrictecExports

Read the magazine HERE.

Ocrim company profile

http://www.ocrim.com/site/inglese/index.html

The important investments made by Ocrim are the demonstration of its will to grow. Many are its activities all around the world - in particular, milling plants, feed mills, bio-ethanol plants, silos, cereal conveying lines and electrical installations; but the underlying factor in all this is the industrialization - in other words the standardization - of production processes in order to cut primary costs, thus offering competitive prices without jeopardizing product quality.

This is an efficient policy on which Ocrim will go on concentrating its efforts in the future, attaining trust, loyalty and consolidating its market share. The challenge is to further improve itself but in a manner consistent with its strategic and commercial plan.

Ocrim’s partnership with Paglierani and long-standing collaborations with sub-suppliers complete the added value that Ocrim is able to offer its Customers, demonstrating the Italian spirit in a determined search for product quality without compromise.

Visit the website HERE.

29/07/2015: 10 healthy reasons to eat quinoa

Image: Christian Guthier

Got quinoa? If not, you may want to consider adding it to your diet. A recent review article by researchers from Rutgers University, Universidad Arturo Prat and Universidad de Las Américas explained the specific phytochemicals and nutrients that make quinoa so healthy. The study was featured in the July issue of Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, published by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT).

Protein: Quinoa has a higher protein content than barley, oat, rice and maize(1). Due to a property of its storage proteins, quinoa is a safe gluten-free option(2). According to the FAO and WHO, quinoa protein can supply over 180 percent of the daily recommended intake of the 10 essential amino acids for adult nutrition(3).
Carbohydrate and Fibre: Quinoa contains 10 percent total dietary fibre(4). Dietary fibre is essential for digestive health, and can promote satiety, reduce cholesterol absorption, and reduce risk and severity of gastrointestinal infection and inflammation(5). Its soluble fibre content also serves as a prebiotic(6).
Lipids: Quinoa seed oil contains polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) with a higher omega-6 to omega-3 ratio than other plant oils(7). Other essential fatty acids in quinoa contribute to brain development, insulin sensitivity, cardiovascular health, immunity, inflammation and membrane function(8). These fatty acids may exert beneficial physiological effects as well(9).
Vitamins: Quinoa is rich in Vitamins A, B, C and E. These vitamins play a major role in metabolism, regulating cell growth and development, and improving vision(10).
Minerals: Quinoa contains sufficient amounts of calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. Its mineral content is higher than that of rice, wheat and other cereals(11).
Saponins: Saponins, found in the outer seed coat of quinoa, are useful in producing organic crops because they protect crops from microbial infection and from being eaten by insects and birds.
Phytoecdysteroids: Found in quinoa, phytoecdysteroids can help build muscle and reduce stress(12). Other benefits include promoting growth, healing wounds and serving as an antioxidant and antidepressive(13).
Phenolics: Phenolics are compounds found in quinoa that serve as antioxidants and have anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antidiabetic, anti-obesity and cardioprotective effects(14).
Betalains: Betalains are what give quinoa their yellow, red and black colors(15). They contain a range of health-promoting properties and serve as a natural dye for foods. Betalains are approved by the US FDA and EU as a safe, natural alternative to synthetic color ingredients in foods.
Glycine betaine: Glycine betaine is an amino acid in quinoa that has been involved in the treatment and prevention of diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease(16).

Read the Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety here.

Image: Jennifer

References:

Wright and others 2002; Repo-Carrasco and others 2003; Comai and others 2007; Abugoch James 2009; Jancurová and others 2009; Peiretti and others 2013
Zevallos and others 2014
Wright and others 2002; Abugoch James 2009; Vega-Galvez and others 2010; Miranda and others 2012b
Lamothe and others 2015
Brownawell and others 2012; De Carvalho and others 2014
Biesiekierski and others 2013
Tang and others 2015a
Kim and others 2006; McCusker and Grant-Kels 2010; Vega-Galvez and others 2010
Calder 2012
Fitzpatrick and others 2012
Bhargava and others 2006
Báthori 2002
Lafont and Dinan 2003; Dinan and Lafont 2006; Dinan 2009
Harborne and Williams 2000; Da-Silva and others 2007; Kelly 2011; Jeong and others 2012
Bhargava and others 2006
Olthof and Verhoef 2005

Visit the IFT site HERE.

29/07/2015: Yara and BASF break ground on new ammonia plant in Freeport, Texas

Yara International ASA and BASF broke ground today on a world scale ammonia plant at the BASF site in Freeport, Texas. Total capital investment for the plant - which is expected to come online in 2017 - is estimated at $600 million. As part of the project, Yara will build an ammonia tank at the BASF terminal and BASF will upgrade its current terminal and pipeline assets for the export of ammonia from the new plant.

Pictured from left are Dirk Reinelt, SVP, Senior Project Shale Gas, BASF Corporation; Wayne T. Smith, Chairman and CEO BASF Corporation; Torgeir Kvidal, Acting President and CEO, Yara International; Stefano Pigozzi, President Monomers, BASF Corporation and Chris Witte, SVP and General Manager of the Freeport Site, BASF Corporation.

"I am very pleased to be here today, initiating the construction of an important investment for Yara - alongside our partners at BASF. The building of the Freeport Ammonia plant is a firm demonstration of how we deliver on our growth strategy," said Torgeir Kvidal, president and CEO of Yara.

"BASF is in a period of significant investment in North America," said Wayne T. Smith, chairman & CEO of BASF Corporation and member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE.

"Through the joint investment with Yara, we can take advantage of world-scale production economics and the attractive raw material costs in the United States; strengthening our operations in Freeport and the competitiveness of our customer value chain in the region."

The plant will have a capacity of about 750,000 metric tons per year and will be owned 68 percent by Yara and 32 percent by BASF. Each party will off-take ammonia from the plant in accordance with its equity share. BASF will use its share of ammonia from the plant to produce caprolactam, a key ingredient in the manufacture of nylons for carpet, textiles, film, monofilaments, and wire and cable. Yara will market the remainder mostly to industrial customers in North America, in addition to supplying the agricultural sector.

The hydrogen based process that will be used in the new plant significantly reduces capital expenditures and maintenance compared to a traditional natural gas based ammonia plant. A long-term supply agreement for nitrogen and hydrogen has been signed with Praxair Inc, the largest industrial gases company in North America, linking the feedstock variable cost to the advantageous natural gas prices available at the US Gulf coast.

KBR, Inc, Houston, Texas, has been awarded a fixed price turnkey contract for the engineering, procurement and construction. The plant is expected to be completed by the end of 2017. Yara will manage construction of the plant; BASF will operate the plant.

Peak construction for the project will create up to 550 jobs. Once completed, operation of the plant will add approximately 35 full time BASF positions in Freeport.

Visit the Yara site HERE.

And the BASF site HERE.

29/07/2015: GMO rice could reduce greenhouse gas emissions, study says

http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-gmo-rice-methane-emissions-20150722-story.html

Image: Toshiyuki IMAI

Over half the people on the planet eat rice as a staple food, the Los Angeles Times reports. Growing rice emits methane, a potent greenhouse gas — to the tune of 25 million to 100 million metric tons of methane every year, a notable contribution to human-caused greenhouse gas emissions.

As the world’s population grows and needs more food, the problem is likely to get worse, but genetic engineering could help, a new study reports. By transferring a barley gene into a rice plant, scientists have created a new variety of rice that produces less methane while still making highly starchy, productive seeds. The development of the new rice strain is described this week in the journal Nature.

Finding a way to boost rice production while reducing methane emissions has been a goal for many years, said Chuanxin Sun, a plant biologist at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and the lead author of the study. By engineering barley genes into the rice plant, “we demonstrated it’s possible to get these two traits with this technology,” he said.

When rice paddies are flooded, methane-producing bacteria thrive on the carbohydrates secreted by rice roots in the oxygen-free soils. The rice plant itself acts as a conduit, transmitting methane from the soil into the atmosphere.

Methane traps heat in the atmosphere with devastating efficiency: Over 20 years, it is 84 times stronger than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas, according to the most recent assessment from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Read the rest of the LA Times article HERE.

July 28, 2015

28/07/2015: It's not a milestone but the Global Miller demonstrates its growing prowess again

Thank you for reading a leading blog serving the milling industry globally.

Your visits are most welcome and contribute to our growing reach, on a daily and monthly basis, to those working in and around the milling industry.

To demonstrate just how relevant we have become to industry followers I've snap-shot our Google statistic's page and presented it below. It shows that in June we fell just short of reaching 30,000 unique visits and July showed we we still over 20,000. We're on target to finish the month again on over 20,000 views. Overall we have recorded - on a rolling month basis - 646,000 views.

Our blog is now accounting for approximately 25 percent of all views of Milling and Grain content! It's a great way to be seen by industry - both in the stories we publish and the advertisers we promote.

We scour the world for milling news on a daily basis and publish the best of it here and in the magazine, much of it our own content. If you would like to feature in one of our stories just contact us with your news. Of course to claim one of our coveted advertising spaces, you must be an advertisers in our magazine.

Snap-shot taken at 19:45 on July 28, 2015

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28/07/2015: The Pelletier Column: Future rhymes with infrastructure

http://issuu.com/gfmt/docs/mag1505_w1/22

By Christophe Pelletier

First published in Milling and Grain, May 2015

The potential to grow the quantity of food needed to meet the needs of the world growing population is there. It is not just a matter of production on farms, though. To succeed, the entire value chains will have to be well organised and efficient. Infrastructure rarely makes the headlines. Yet, it should because it plays an essential role. Infrastructure is really the lifeblood of future food security.

There cannot be long-term prosperity or successful economic development without an adequate infrastructure. Once food is produced, it must also be delivered to consumers and be eaten. For the future, the population boom that will take place in urban centers of Asia and Africa is going to require solid planning and vision. Many of the megacities that will emerge in the coming 40 to 50 years hardly exist, yet. Nonetheless, they are coming.

Organising the proper supply of food, water and all other essentials from production centers is crucial. The amount of money needed will be huge. For some regions, a Marshall Plan type of action will be necessary. In my previous article, I explained why I see a great opportunity for the feed and milling industry to lead in the future to achieve food security in the decades to come. It is particularly true for infrastructure.

The feed and milling industries could not exist if it could not get the raw materials delivered to the plant and their products to the customers. They need storage, vehicles, roads, railways and waterways. They are going to need them even more in the coming decades. As the map of population and of economic activity evolves, so does the location of consumption centres as well as of production areas.

The organisation of supply chains needs to adapt. Raw materials will originate from new and different locations and the industry will have to deliver customers in new places. Because of its central position in the value chains, the feed and milling industry can look both upstream and downstream to pinpoint where infrastructure needs will be.

Then, it has a duty to be vocal about it and to let all the stakeholders know about the infrastructure objectives to achieve. The “unfortunate” thing about infrastructure is that it is a long-term investment. Nonetheless, it is an essential one. If the goods cannot move to their destination smoothly, neither will the money in the economy.

When done well, the positive financial return lies in economic development, in more and better jobs. Eventually, more people will have more money to buy more goods and services, and also to pay taxes to ensure a good maintenance of the infrastructure. Good infrastructure helps prosperity and peace. Of course, an important question is who must finance infrastructure. Many stakeholders benefit from a good infrastructure and therefore it must be a collaborative effort.

Setting up the right infrastructure improves sustainability of food production and supply. Not only does it reduce food losses, but it allows transportation systems that use less energy and emits fewer greenhouse gases. In particular, railways and waterways that replace road truck transport work towards that goal. Better roads also make transport cleaner and more efficient than bad ones.

Using the right type of vehicles and maintaining them properly reduces the environmental impact. A good infrastructure prevents waste. The key is to be able to bring the food to the consumers.

Still, too much of the food production does not reach the market because of a deficient infrastructure. The FAO estimates the annual cost of fixing post-harvest problems in developing countries at $83 billion. Doing so provides many upsides for all stakeholders from farms, businesses and government.

The FAO estimates the annual missed value of post-harvest losses at US$ 1 billion. Clearly, the return of fixing postharvest losses is huge. There is more than enough money to fix the problem. Compared with the amounts spent since 2008 to bail out banks, to print money massively as it has been done and to rescue some financially troubled European countries, it is a drop in the ocean!

Yet, fixing post-harvest losses is a painfully slow process. Solid collaborative leadership that crystallises the energies is necessary to make it happen. All stakeholders must realise how important infrastructure is for them and for all of us. They must come on board and together solve infrastructure problems.

Practically, reducing food losses means that to supply the same quantity, food production does not have to put as much pressure on the environment as it does when there is waste. How long will we accept not only to waste food, but also all the water, the energy resources, the inputs, the time and the money that have been used to produce it in the first place?

Christophe Pelletier is a food and agriculture strategist and futurist from Canada. He works internationally. He has published two books on feeding the world’s growing population. His blog is called “The Food Futurist”.

Read the magazine HERE.

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