About the experience of storing corn in sleeves

The company uses grain bags primarily for corn, as it is the main crop delivered to their elevator. According to Serhiy Hutsulyuk, while all grains can be stored in bags, oilseeds—such as sunflower and soybeans—should be bagged with caution to reduce the risk of damaged seeds.

Cygnet stores between 30,000 and 180,000 tons of corn in bags. Notably, the largest volume at their Andrushky elevator was recorded in 2021, with 108,000 tons stored in 501 bags.

For the bagging site, they choose the field closest to the elevator from the freshly harvested crop (with a minimum possible distance of 5-7 km). The area is disked (to remove stubble) and leveled to eliminate furrows. Removing stubble is mandatory, as it poses a fire hazard.

Bags are placed about 1.5 meters apart. It is best to align the bag with the slope to ensure natural “drainage.” This prevents the bag from sitting in water during rain or snowmelt.

“We dry the corn and send it to the silo for 24 hours to cool down. Then we load it into grain carts and transport it to the field for bagging in polymer sleeves. If this rule is followed, the grain stores well and does not spoil. However, the higher the grain moisture and the ambient temperature during bagging, the shorter the storage life,” says Serhiy Hutsulyuk.

Serhiy identifies the film’s vulnerability to mechanical damage as a drawback. Although the film is durable (230-250 microns thick), it is not metal—there is a risk of depressurization caused by rodents and birds. However, Serhiy admits that the Cygnet-Centre elevator has not yet faced this issue because they do not keep grain in bags for long periods.

“Practice shows that there aren’t enough rodents in the fields to cause significant damage to the bags. Mice can only damage a bag at the loading points where it might not be tightly packed and has folds. These areas can be treated with rodenticides. Generally, we consulted experts, and for long-term storage, they recommend placing mousetraps between the bags across the entire area. This way, rodents are drawn to the bait,” notes Serhiy Hutsulyuk.

How is grain loaded and unloaded?

Storing grain in bags requires specialized equipment, specifically grain bagging and discharge machines. Cygnet uses three sets of such machines produced by “Kobzarenko Plant” for its two elevators.

The principle of bagging machines is simple: grain is poured into a hopper, then transported by an auger into the tunnel where it is compressed. The discharge machine also uses an auger mechanism.

Have questions? Call Oleksandr Chernenko at +38 050 388 8305; he knows everything about grain bag storage technology.

Based on materials from Latifundist.com