Family, Ward and Branch guide to

Storing Wheat in NZ

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1st Edition, 2010

Low moisture levelBuy wheat with a low moisture level. i.e.10% - 12.5%.

Store it in dry containers the same dayyou receive it.

Check your containers to make sure theykeep moisture out. Store in a dry coolplace.

Pest-ProofContainers must be mice and weevil proof.Rats and mice gnaw through manycontainers though plastic drums are astrong deterrent.

Mice bite through vacuum-packed plasticwith ease. Pack these into vermin-proofcontainers.

Stored food is too expensive to feed tomice. Also, they might urinate, excrete ordie on your food storage. Store it well.Get the containers first, wheat second.

Mouse photo by pshabPshab www.flickr.com/photos/pshab/ CC BY-NC 2.0

Storing GrainFor those who want to store wheatfor several years this article providessome guidelines for successful wheatstorage.

The Big 3However you store your wheat, you’llneed to do these three things: removeoxygen, maintain a low moisture leveland protect it from insects androdents.

Remove OxygenAlthough removing oxygen is notessential, I recommend it. Here’swhy.

Food deteriorates faster when oxygenis present. Without oxygen, foodretains its flavour and tastes nicer,longer.

Weevil eggs which are present in freshwheat will hatch into an oxygenlessenvironment and die after hatching.Weevil will hatch then die.

Weevil photo by ken-ichiwww.flickr.com/photos/ken-ichi/ CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Oxygen can be removed by vacuumpacking. Alternatively, air can bereplaced with a harmless gas likenitrogen or CO2.

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PreparationYou will need:

· Esky or polystyrene chilli-bin

· 240 Space-Saver containers & lids

· Plastic ladle of 1 table-spooncapacity

· Hammer to test wheat

· Labels for containers ( Lid Labelsand Product Labels)

Hammer TestTest a wheat sample for it's moisturecontent. This will ensure it is dryenough for long-term storage.

I recommend you use the "HammerTest."

Take a spoon of wheat from yourwheat-sack. About twenty grains.Place them on something made ofsolid metal. A piece of railway line,a vice or steel anvil will do. Hit thewheat kernels once, hard, with ahammer.

If the wheat shatters into pieces itis dry enough to store long-term. Ifit mashes or does not shatter cleanly,then there's too much moisture inyour wheat for storage.

Longer seeds should snap smartly,cleanly in half when bent if they arethis dry. Wheat and corn seeds shouldshatter and powder when hit withthe head of a hammer.

That's our Dry Seed Test. It is veryreliable. Beans, peas and other largeseeds will shatter if sufficiently dry.

Get Dry Ice· Collect the Dry Ice within an hour of

using it. Avoid keeping it for severalhours before use.

· Get an Esky or polystyrene chilli-bin.

· Go to your nearest BOC store. Buy onekg dry ice. It will cost about $15.

· Drive back with the window partiallyopen so you have air flow in the car.

· You need to work quickly as a teambefore the CO2 evaporates

Assign Team Member TasksYou can do this all alone but its better toget helpers and work as a team.

Mormons storing wheat together is similarto the old-fashioned ‘barn-raising’ of ourearly pioneers. We work together as ateam.

Assign people to the roles of a Sack-Man,Pourer, Bin-Man, and an Ice-Guy.

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Train your team Teach your team the following:

· Warn team that dry-ice is verycold at minus 78 degrees. Theymust not touch it, eat it, or playwith it. Read aloud the SafetyData Sheet about it.Keep yourhands dry when working with it.

· Ensure the room is ventilated andhas air flow.

· Keep the lid on the Dry-Ice Eskyas much as possible. Avoidinspecting it unnecessarily. Somedry ice will sublimate every timeyou open the container. Use itwithin hours. The sooner thebetter.

Learn Your Dutythen begin

· The “Sack-Man” will open allwheat sacks. They will also foldand stack empty sacks. Keep thearea clear.

· The “Pourer” spours 4 cm wheatin the bottom of each Space-Saver in the room. This will coverthe bottom of each Space-Saver.It prevents the base of the Space-Saver freezing.

· The “Bin-Man” will inspect space-saver bins for contaminants duringmanufacturing process. Removeany loose pieces of plastic. Ensureeach container is clean. They willsupply new, empty Space-SaverBins and to keep the “Ice-Guy”supplied with new bins.

· The “Ice-Guy” will use a longhandled plastic ladle to deposit10 grams (a heaped table-spoon)of dry ice into each Space-Saveron top of the small amount ofwheat in the bottom centre ofeach 15 litre container.

Note: 10 grams is about 3 pelletson a heaped table-spoon.

· The “Pourer” then immediately fillsthe remainder of the container withwheat from the sack.

· The “Ice-Guy” shakes down the wheatto settle it so the container can befilled to near maximum capacity.

Fit the lid with one corner slightlyraised so the expanding gas can bubble-off. If you seal it too soon the expandinggas might pop the lid of and spreadwheat everywhere.

· The “Sack-Man” will remove theSpace-Savers as they are filled withwheat and stack them at least 4 metersaway so your work area is not crowded.Do not stack two layers high until after‘Bubble-off’.

Afix LabelsPlace labels neatly and squarely on eachSpace-Saver bin with the date packed andcontents.

SublimationBubble-off for 60 minutes (Sublimation)

“Bubble-off” is the process where the dry-ice sublimates (turns from a solid to a gas)in the wheat and turns instantly from asolid to a gas. It expands to 500 times it’ssize in this process.

Excess air will burp out of the partiallyclosed lid. The CO2 is colder than the airin the container so it will fill up from thebottom of the container, pushing the airout. CO2 is also heavier than air.

The lid should be fully covering the baseyet able to allow gas under slight pressureto escape from the container so no pressurebuilds up.

Air should not be able to get in duringbubble-off.

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Allow the wheat to 'bubble off' CO2as the dry ice sublimates.

The containers will bubble out excessCO2 for 40 minutes.

Vacate the room as the CO2 'bubblesoff'.

CO2 is not poisonous to inhale butpeople need to breathe in someoxygen.

Ventilate the room. Anticipatechildren, youth or visitors enteringthe room overnight or in the morning.

The room may be filled with CO2 ifit there is no air-flow.

Secure LidsSecure lids firmly 1 hour after fillingthe Space-Savers. Ensure they aresealed perfectly. The dry ice will havesublimated. Excess CO2 and air willhave ‘bubbled-off’.

Where To Get Containers

Space-Saver containers are good forstoring wheat. They have a 15 Litrecapacity with a lid that seals.

Obtain them second hand for just afew dollars each from fruit piebakeries across New Zealand. BarkersOrchards package their processedfruit filling in Space-Saver containersand send them full to fruit pie andcake bakeries all across NZ.

They ship with two types of lids. Onetype seals much better than the other.

New containers are made by ViscountPlastics in Christchurch, Tel 64 09 2768679, sold in bulk.

www.viscountplastics.co.nz

Buying new is much more expensive,however, it ensures you get the lidsthat seal best.

Oxygen AbsorbersDo not use oxygen absorbers when storingwheat in CO2. Its unneccessary.

Only use oxygen absorbers when storingsmall quantities of wheat in vacuum packs.

You will not need them at all if using dryice as the CO2 will drive out all air includingthe oxygen that is in the air.

AboutIf you have additional information or wishto improve this document, please emailhank.ensing@gmail.com

Indemnity Clause

No responsibility is taken by the authorfor the use of any information providedherein with regard to health and safety,food stored, loss of food, damage to foodor flavour or any other aspect.

“I bought 12 empty containers, 2sacks of wheat and stored the wheatusing dry ice all on my own. It tookme two hours. I found it easy to storethe wheat alone.”

Hank Ensing serves as a ward welfare specialistin the Grandview Ward, Glenview New ZealandStake.

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