The Importance of Corn Moisture Analysis

If there’s one thing everyone involved in corn crops can agree on, it’s that corn moisture matters, and it matters at every stage of the corn harvest process. That’s why the Near Infrared Spectroscopy innovation that is revolutionizing corn moisture analysis is improving every aspect of corn seed production. 

Corn moisture content affects the quality of the grain and its nutritional value, which in turn impacts its dollar value in the market and the uses to which it can be put. Moisture levels affect how sturdy versus brittle the plants are, which can affect how successful a harvest is. Corn that’s too dry may be weak, leading to toppling and stalk lodging. Too much moisture, on the other hand, and your crop may be plagued by spoilage and mold.

Corn moisture levels affect how a crop can be stored, what level of shrinkage can be expected, and whether a farmer will need to pay a drying fee to an elevator. It’s also a factor in the shelf life of a crop. 

Numerous elements may play a role in the moisture content of a corn harvest, and moisture levels may vary greatly from year to year, place to place, type of grain, and so on. The time of year can make a significant difference, too. In the Midwest, one acre of corn can release between 3,000 and 4,000 gallons of water every day during the peak growing season but barely dries out at all without assistance after November. 

The important thing, therefore, is to have accurate information about the corn moisture content of the crop you’re dealing with here and now.

The Problems With Legacy Measurement Technology

Weather events, local conditions and more all influence moisture levels. Growers with large fields close to one another sometimes find that moisture levels vary even in crops growing in fields next to one another. Accurate corn moisture tests are essential to determine the reality on the ground. 

Corn moisture tests have traditionally relied on a small number of samples and laboratory testing that introduces delays in the analysis. This delay itself can be problematic since the water content can change within the few days it takes to get the results back. 

Moreover, reliable and up-to-date information about corn moisture is needed at diverse levels of an organization. Data that needs to be uploaded or updated manually, and is saved in spreadsheets or shared via emails, isn’t enough to keep the company informed. 

SCIO Solves the Problems and Streamlines the Process

The in-field Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) innovation embedded in SCIO’s devices has changed what’s possible in corn moisture analysis. 

NIRS equipment once required technical expertise to understand or operate, but now handheld, robust, portable NIR scanners like the SCIO Mini or the SCIO Cup make it possible to analyze corn moisture levels accurately and non-destructively, with a split-second scan that gives results instantly. Additionally, since tests are simple and real-time, far more samples can be taken and so the level of accuracy increases as well. 

This kind of corn moisture meter enables a corn moisture test to be carried out by anyone whether in the field, while harvesting, or at central sorting and storage locations – and provides results that can be acted on right away. Growers can say goodbye to the need for laboratory analysis and expert training for measurement.

All this alters the level of precision growers can expect and plan for as part of their harvest. Rather than hoping to land on the right week for harvest, growers can rely on accurate results to get exactly the right time, with full awareness of how moisture levels may vary across fields or regions. Since scans are fast and simple, many more can be carried out, covering the entire field or fields and dramatically increasing the level of precision available. 

Switching to using SCIO’s devices to measure corn moisture increases efficiency, improves the quality of the crop and therefore the price it can fetch, and makes planning for drying and storage a science rather than an art. All of this has direct economic implications. ring the harvest season.

Economic Implications of Corn Moisture 

Making the information actionable is as important as getting accurate data in the first place. Corn moisture meters have often been used in conjunction with complex equations and tables to determine the consequences of results for harvest time, drying requirements, storage, and so on. 

SCIO’s revolution in NIRS equipment has changed what is possible in terms of the utility of the data gathered from NIR scanners, as well as changing the nature of the scans themselves. Real-time moisture information can be synced automatically and at once with cloud-based systems anywhere in the world. That means every layer of an organization can make decisions based on the most reliable and relevant data possible. 

This has an economic impact when it comes to a variety of factors, including:

• Corn yield
• Grading impact (avoiding broken corn, mold, loss of quality in storage etc.)
• Shrinkage
• Handling losses 
• Dying fees and costs
• Storage
• Shelf life
• Market price

Corn moisture has such wide-ranging economic implications for all parts of the harvesting and processing industry that it is vital that all the relevant parts of an organization work from a single source of data so that the best decisions can be made at all levels of the organization. Some organizations working with SCIO have begun including automatic flags or triggers within their systems so that specific moisture levels can result in certain actions being initiated, and any issues can be caught and mitigated as early as possible. 

The moisture levels of corn crops will always vary depending on a huge number of factors, not all of which can be controlled or predicted. It’s for that reason that measuring corn moisture accurately and making the correct decisions based on that analysis, is so important to include as part of the regular framework of any company working with corn crops. 

Reliable, actionable moisture data from SCIO scanners enables an organization to make optimal, data-driven decisions that increase the success possible for the business.