b'Now, You Can Relax KATHY FLORESVP SUPPLY CHAIN,BENSON HILL BIOSYSTEMSITS NOT UNUSUALto hear about a canola bin heating up over the winterkflores@bensonhillbio.comfrom not being checked, and in some extreme cases even catching fire. A@BensonHillBio25,000-bushel bin of canola at around $10 per bushel is a lot of money tobensonhillbio.comlose ($250,000), and thats why monitoring your grain is so important. Its crucial to check your bins to prevent grain from heating up or spoiling.The increasingly popular, large, flat bottom bins are usually equipped with temperature cables. However, I encourage temperature cables to be installed in every bin, whether its a hopper combo or large, flat bottom bin. The abilityLets Fire Up the to monitor your grain in the bin could mean the difference between a large profit and a disaster. Future of ProteinAnother benefit of temperature cables and monitoring your grain is when growing a specialty crop, such as malt barley, you can show buyers the tem-perature of the grain when it went into the bin, the temperature you cooled the grain down to, and the temperature the bin was maintained at throughoutFOR MANY OF US,theres nothing better than the winter. This way the buyer can be assured the quality of the grain he issummertime and the sizzle of a thick steak hitting buying is as good as the day it went into the bin. a hot grill. Over the last few years, moisture sensors have been added to the grain But, as enjoyable as that may be, the profes-monitoring toolbox. For example, a cable was only able to tell the tempera- sional side of me finds it hard to tune out the ture in a bin, but now you can monitor the moisture of the grain and watchchallenges facing livestock farmers to find more the drying front moving up through the entire 4,000-bushel hopper bin whennutritious, cost-effective feed. Not to mention the youre doing natural air drying.opportunities of plant-based protein alternatives Typically, grain isnt dried in the large, flat bottom bins, but there are somethat taste like a backyard masterpiece.operations that do. To dry grain in these bins, a 25- to 30-horsepower, three- As the global population swells, a lot of things phase fan is required, rather than a 10-horsepower single phase fan to aerateare going to have to change. One of them is protein. the bin. Moisture cables can be installed also to monitor the natural air grain- Until now, there have been a few limiting issues drying process.with keeping up with that need for crop innova-I really like the wireless bin monitoring systems as you dont have to checktion to address this accelerating demand. One has the bins because they check themselves. If a temperature sensor starts tobeen the time and cost of traditional breeding, and heat up, the monitoring system sends a text message or email directly to theanother is the regulatory and consumer complex-farmers cell phone, indicating the temperature change and the bin and cableity surrounding GMOs. Something for which the numbers affected. The alert signals the operator to turn on the fan.market and many food producers simply dont With some monitoring systems, fan functions can be controlled from a cellhave the appetite.phone. Imagine turning on a fan from your sun loungerFortunately, we have some new tools. Advances on a beach in Mexico in January. in data-driven prediction can accelerate the plant Whether its keeping an eye on grain tem- breeding process. With these tools, we can capital-perature, or temperature and moisture, moni- ize on the genetic diversity that nature has built toring your grain is like putting money ininto plants, we can eliminate 80% of the trial and the bankyou know that the grain is safeerror associated with traditional breeding and and being looked after. The cost of cablesprovide greater predictability and precision in gene or even a wireless monitoring system is atargeting. small one when compared with the large These same tools can also be used to develop investment its protecting in the bin, andother crops for plant-based protein, such as yellow the peace of mind is priceless. pea. With genome editing, yellow peas, fava beans and many other crops can better serve demand for new protein options that are rising 20% per yearKEN PIERSON increasing nutrition, flavor and texture and creating new markets for growers.SALES AND PRODUCT MANAGER, Are you ready to help meet the growing and MERIDIAN MANUFACTURINGevolving demand for protein? Are you ready to see kpierson@meridianmfg.com what genome editing can do for you? If so, Id love meridianmfg.comto talk. SEPTEMBER 2019SEEDWORLD.COM /39'