Relationships between climate and winter cereal grain quality in Finland and their potential for forecasting

Many studies have demonstrated the effects of climate on cereal yield, but there has been little work carried out examining the relationships between climate and cereal grain quality on a national scale. In this study national mean hectolitre weight for both rye and winter wheat in Finland was modelled using monthly gridded accumulated snow depth, precipitation rate, solar radiation and temperature over the period 1971 to 2001. Variables with significant relationships in correlation analysis both before and after difference detrending were further investigated using forward stepwise regression. For rye, March snow depth, and June and July solar radiation accounted for 66% of the year-to-year variance in hectolitre weight, and for winter wheat January snow depth, June solar radiation and August temperature accounted for 62% of the interannual variance in hectolitre weight. Further analysis of national variety trials and weather station data was used to support proposed biological mechanisms. Finally a cross validation technique was used to test forecast models with those variables available by early July by making predictions of above or below the mean hectolitre weight. Analysis of the contingency tables for these predictions indicated that national hectolitre weight forecasts are feasible for both cereals in advance of harvest

Air pollution and livestock production

The air in a livestock farming environment contains high concentrations of dust particles and gaseous pollutants. The total inhalable dust can enter the nose and mouth during normal breathing and the thoracic dust can reach into the lungs. However, it is the respirable dust particles that can penetrate further into the gas-exchange region, making it the most hazardous dust component. Prolonged exposure to high concentrations of dust particles can lead to respiratory health issues for both livestock and farming staff. Ammonia, an example of a gaseous pollutant, is derived from the decomposition of nitrous compounds. Increased exposure to ammonia may also have an effect on the health of humans and livestock. There are a number of technologies available to ensure exposure to these pollutants is minimised. Through proactive means, (the optimal design and management of livestock buildings) air quality can be improved to reduce the likelihood of risks associated with sub-optimal air quality. Once air problems have taken hold, other reduction methods need to be applied utilising a more reactive approach. A key requirement for the control of concentration and exposure of airborne pollutants to an acceptable level is to be able to conduct real-time measurements of these pollutants. This paper provides a review of airborne pollution including methods to both measure and control the concentration of pollutants in livestock buildings

Government Interventions, Market Integration, and Price Risk in Pakistan’s Punjab

This paper empirically examines the spatial and intertemporal price relations of grains in Pakistan’s Punjab. The salient feature of the paper is that quantity variables such as market surplus and government release are incorporated in the price arbitrage model to quantify the effects of government interventions. Regression analysis using three-year crosssection data shows that the farm-gate prices of wheat after harvest are mostly explained by the government support price while those of Basmati paddy have more unexplained variation. This difference could be due to a difference in the price support mechanism. Investigation on intertemporal price relations shows that wholesale wheat prices regularly increase at the rate of storage costs in the first half of a food year, and that the price rise is repressed by the government release in the second half only in a normal year.

Effects Of Wheat Grain Moisture: Quality, Germination, And Relationship To Accumulated Growing Degree Days

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a cereal crop of global importance. As global demand increases, it is essential to increase the quality and efficiency of crop production. Harvesting wheat early provides an opportunity for increased grain quality, and it may also allow the grower to double-crop soybean ( Glycine max L.) after wheat more effectively. Our objectives were to determine if harvesting grain early, at high moisture would, 1) increase milling and baking quality and 2) improve germination potential. As a result of these objectives, we will develop a model to predict dry-down of wheat. Five soft red and five soft white winter wheat cultivars were grown at West Lafayette, IN, over two years using a randomized complete block design. Grain was sampled by hand as drying progressed from approximately 40 to 10% moisture. Milling and baking quality of the samples was tested at the USDA-ARS Soft Wheat Quality Laboratory in Wooster, OH. Parameters tested included flour yield, whole grain hardness, whole grain protein, flour protein, softness equivalent, lactic acid solvent retention capacity (SRC), sucrose SRC, estimated cookie diameter, and modified milling, baking, and softness equivalent scores. Germination was evaluated by the Indiana Crop Improvement Association. Additionally, grain moisture loss was compared with growing degree days (GDD) accumulated from heading date to harvest date to discern the relationship between grain dry-down and thermal time. Overall, harvesting grain early at high moisture maintained, if not increased, milling and baking quality. Flour yield, one of the most important quality parameters, did not change as a result grain moisture across the two years and the cultivars of both wheat types (means ranging 64.8 to 68.4). Protein quality, as measured by lactic acid SRC, was not detrimentally affected by grain moisture in either year in both wheat types. In general, grain at 22 to 24% moisture displayed favorable milling and baking quality for most parameters. Cultivar response differed only in one quality parameter with soft red wheat in 2013. The remaining effects of harvest grain moisture were consistent within wheat types and years. Germination was unaffected by high grain moisture at harvest except for soft red wheat in 2013, in which germination increased as grain moisture decreased. Both wheat types showed a strong linear decrease in grain moisture with accumulation of GDDs after heading, but differed between years due to opposing weather patterns. While the drought conditions in 2012 caused a grain moisture loss of 2.1% per 10 accumulated GDD, relatively cooler, wetter conditions in 2013 caused a grain moisture loss of 1.4% per 10 accumulated GDD. These findings are important to growers who may want to increase the quality of their wheat as well as predicting the time to harvest the wheat early in order to plant double-crop soybean