New Grain Grading Training Plan Will Increase Farmer Confidence at Harvest Time

By Andy Brown

Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation

All graders working at grain elevators in Louisiana will be tested and certified for the 2021 harvest season following an announcement from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF).

Those graders will be trained, tested and certified by LDAF to uphold the standards set through the U.S. Grain Standards Act. The goal is to provide consistent and professional grain inspection and weighing services for producers, handlers processors, exporters, importers and end-users.

This LDAF training and certification will provide uniform instruction and standards for graders, rather than relying upon each grain buyer to provide its own internal training. This standardization of training and grading will provide more consistent grades beneficial to farmers and consumers.

“We have very high accuracy rates already, when you look at elevator’s grain graders,” said Donald Schexnayder, chair of the Louisiana Farm Bureau Soybean, Wheat and Feed Grain Committee.  “Now, by adding this extra layer of education and certification, both the farmer and grader can be even more confident both sides are getting an accurate result.” 

Training will take place over the summer in preparation for the 2021 harvest season.

“Every dollar counts for the farmer, so having accurate grades means a farmer can sleep a little easier knowing the results he/she brought home truly represented their fields,” Schexnayder said.

Along with this new increase in training and certification, LDAF is working with Louisiana Farm Bureau to better educate farmers of their right to appeal their grade to receive a federally sanctioned “official grade” through LDAF or the Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS).

“Through this discussion, we also learned many farmers are not aware of the important system that is the U.S. Grain Standards Act,” Schexnayder said. “We are also working on educational tools for the farmer to know his or her rights when it comes to questioning a grade. There is going to be some human error involved in a visual grade, so it is important that our farmers know their options when it comes to asking for a review of the grain grade they receive in the rare instance there has been a mistake. Like I said, every bushel, every dollar, matters.”

Louisiana has previously operated under an “umbrella” licensing and training requirement for these grain buying facilities, allowing one elevator representative to be trained, tested and certified by LDAF as the grader and sampler, as long as the representative is responsible for subordinate graders and samplers.

Through Louisiana Farm Bureau’s Soybean, Wheat and Feed Grain Advisory Committee, which is made up of grain farmers from across the state, the LDAF is implementing direct training and education to those who are making the decisions affecting the dollars farmers are paid for their grain. By training each grader/sampler, Farm Bureau believes Louisiana’s already efficient grain trade processes will become even more effective for the state’s farmers and grain buyers.

For questions regarding training opportunities, or for more information on Louisiana’s grain grading systems, you can visit LDAF’s Commodity Commission website https://www.ldaf.state.la.us/consumers/commodities-commission/  or contact your local LDAF Commodity Commission representative:
Delhi Office: 318-366-7080
Oak Grove: 318-428-5430
Jonesville: 318-339-7642