The grain bag concept   A brief history of grain bagging   What does it mean? 20 powerful reasons why it can help you A word about bag quality   Guiding principles for storing grain in plastic bags   R-9 bagger R-10 bagger EA-350 unloader EA-250 unloader   Richiger S.A.   U.S.A. Canada Australia New Zealand Italy Ukraine   Ask us what you need to know   An introduction to the grain bag concept             Some 30 years ago, in the beginning of the 80’s, a new method for keeping forage inside large cylinder shaped plastic tubes was introduced in the United States. As an additional advantage, besides their main use as storage for chopped corn or alfalfa clippings, these airtight polyethylene tubes or bags were publicized as being well suited for holding whole dry grain. In North America there was little interest in using bags to conserve grain because mostly there was sufficient storage availability and besides, a policy of support prices for agricultural staples did not encourage grain production surpluses. In other countries the situation was different. In Argentina, for example, storage space was already scarce by 1990 as the grain harvest nationwide totaled about 40 million tons. When in the mid 90’s production began to grow by 10% annually, it soon became evident that the shortage of grain storage and handling facilities was a major stumbling block for further expansion and that innovative solutions were required.   Necessity was thus the critical factor that spurred research and pushed the technique to the forefront of agricultural technology in the late part of the 90’s decade, developing slowly at first and then evolving at an accelerated pace as it continued to prove its worth in everyday, real-world conditions. Evidence that the system has fully come of age is attested by the fact that almost half of the total amount of grain produced in the Argentine Republic is now stored inside grain bags, or silo bags as they are known there, and growing. In numbers, this means that in the 2009 campaign some 40 million tons of dry grains were enclosed in plastic and it is expected that at least 45 million tons will find their way into bags in 2010. It is rather surprising to verify that this tonnage amounts to twice the entireAustralian grain production in a good year. The scenario of old has changed considerably in America and the rest of the world as a global-oriented economy has gradually taken over. In this context the rise in the price of commodities such as corn and soybeans, in part because of new productions such as ethanol, are potential boons for the farming community. Add to this the fact that growing worldwide demand for food and energy will most likely sustain and augment this trend. All this represents great opportunity, but it also poses a challenge because adequate planning and logistics are essential if the best results are to be achieved. On-site storage with its inherent advantages is pivotal to a good sales strategy, and storing grain in polyethylene bags is the smart and proven, cost-effective method available today to accomplish that. In fact, the advantages of the grain bagging technique are so many and its appeal is so widespread that its users range from small producers who own a couple of hundred acres of land, to huge international grain traders such as Cargill, Bunge and Dreyfus. Now a method has been developed that allows the dual operations of filling and emptying the bags to be performed in the most simple and straightforward way yet devised: the Flexi-Grain Storage system.         www.richiger.com   duxdesign.com.ar