The best grain bagging system on the market

According to Brett Phillips, manager of Silo Bag Solutions, “the penny seems to have dropped with the industry, in that the modern silo bagging system is the most efficient and economic way to handle and store grain”. When asked why now, Mr Phillips explained there is a combination of reasons, largely due to steep advances in technology and design, particularly over the past 12 months.

“Loading a bag is now a one-man job, the maintenance is near non-existent, the capacity per hour is now huge (up to 1,400 tonne per hour), and the out-loading capacity of the grain is up to 400 tonne per hour,” he said. “The new Akrons are a very well engineered, simplified, productive machine that anyone can use.”

“Even the new Akron extractors now have a retrofitted bag roller on the drawbar, which rolls the bags up once the bag is emptied. They are very clean and easy, and the recycling companies love it in that format.”

Mr Phillips said the economic and mental health benefits, and the importance of getting the crop off the stalk as fast as possible, were finally sinking in.

“Drawn-out harvest windows are avoided by using the silo bagging solution,” he said. “And it’s not just limited to cereals, with many clients now storing canola, pulses, sorghum, even high-moisture maize with ease.”

“Customers have reported finishing harvest in half the time since adopting the system, with half the stress. They’ve simply removed the trucking element at harvest time and the stress of delivering into off-farm or outside-of-paddock storage. There is no need, and that’s significant profit-wise, but also for mental wellbeing.”

“It’s amazing hearing farmers talk about how the pressures of harvest have eased and how it’s more relaxing for owners, employees, and family. Post-harvest, on-farm labour and trucks can be reallocated to marketing the grain, allowing for more considered decisions, more efficient use of fixed costs, and better off-peak trucking rates.”

Mr Phillips said harvester capacity was another key driver. “The new generation headers are taking up to 80 tonne per hour off,” he said. “That’s a lot of grain to shift in a short period of time from just one header, and the cost of having those headers lay idle due to unforeseen delays is significant.”

“The root cause of the majority of harvest delays (weather excluded) occurs outside of the paddock, and usually has a ‘P’, a ‘T’ or a ‘B’ in front of it — People, Trucks and Bulk handlers.”

Mr Phillips said there was also increased buyer demand for ex-farm grain. “The strong trend for buyers to source grain ex-farm and out of the bag has been another big driver,” he said. “Ex-farm bagged grain is fully traceable, quality is segregated, and buyers have the flexibility to call on it, making the grain marketing process much more efficient.”

“For the grain grower, they’re getting a premium by avoiding the costly bulk handling system of trucking, in-out and carry charges, and the inflexibility of buyers physically buying out of the bulk handler.”

Farmer Trent Carter of Wallaloo Park said he is “ahead by $30-plus per tonne by bagging and marketing ex-farm without having to think”. He said alternative grain storage options such as fixed storage and bunkers had limitations from a logistics and cost perspective.

“The cost of fixed storage is close to $300 per tonne, whereas a bag is around $4 per tonne and the storage capacity is effectively unlimited,” he said. “You’re committed to the fixed storage, then you’ve still got the task and cost of trucking to that site, plus weevil management. The same applies to on-farm bunkers.”

Grain and sheep farmer Lenny Polkinghorne of Charinga said, “We’ve run the numbers on fixed storage — the numbers do not work, not even close.” He said he tried on-farm bunkers for two seasons, but was still trucking grain, still opening and closing the bunker, and managing weevils and segregation was difficult.

“Taking the grain out wasn’t easy and the losses from the bunker were too high. We hired an Akron last year just to dip our toe in, but soon realised it made complete sense. The new machine is only the cost of 1.5 field bins and gives us unlimited storage. We bag everything now — even the canola goes in the bag.”

Search “Walk through Silo Bag Solutions Akron machinery” on YouTube.

Silo Bag Solutions will be at Henty at Block C, sites 48–50 and 93–100.