A number of years ago we built one of the most cutting-edge processing plants in Western Canada. It turned out great. Not long after it was built, they got a new contract and called me up to say they needed to supply food grade product and wondering what other machinery they needed.
When we built it, we were building a seed plant. If there’s a few stones in your pedigreed seed, it’s not the end of the world. When making a food grade product, stones are a deal breaker. We were now faced with the challenge of putting a destoner into a plant that wasn’t designed for one.
We did it, but the experience really impressed on me the importance of designing plants that have room for other kinds of equipment that might be needed down the road that are able to handle different seed/grain in different ways.
Designing your plant with handling in mind helps you to:
Take advantage of future opportunity. If you don’t design a plant with the future in mind, you limit your business opportunities. Our industry is changing, and food production (like the ever-growing plant-based protein space) is now becoming something that many seed processors are getting actively involved in. Material handling is an important concern in the food space.
Be versatile. A plant that that isn’t set up to deal with pods on the front end or gentle handling or not enough aspiration for other commodities is a plant that will have limited opportunities down the road. If there’s no room left for an optical sorter or a destoner, or a conveyer doesn’t have a proper speed control or you can’t control the vibration of that conveyer well enough, you may find yourself having to say no to opportunities coming your way.
Better deal with a changing climate. Handling is something that’s being discussed a lot right now after the 2021 drought. With a lot of dry seed out there, gentle handling is important, especially with peas.
Many seed plants now have to handle a range of different crops, from soybean to pea, flax to wheat and faba bean and beyond. Working with an equipment supplier well-versed in this could very well be crucial to your future success.
