Drying small quantities of crops for human consumption

Legumes for human consumption are often grown on a smaller scale.  Very small crop volumes challenge the solutions that farmers use for bulk storage, because flat storage and drying silos cannot handle crop volumes of a few hundred kg. Furthermore, legumes for human nutrition are often required to be gluten-free. This places additional demands on the drying facilities which must keep the small crop quantities separate to prevent contamination with gluten from grain. Transport systems pose a particular challenge as few systems can be completely cleaned.

The report 'Drying small quantities of crops for human consumption' from the Innovation Centre for Organic Farming gathers knowhow about dimensioning and operation of drying facilities. Furthermore, it provides several suggestions on how to dry small batches in drying bags and boxes, in containers and in mobile grain dryers.

More air, less heat

When drying food crops and in particular legumes with large seeds, it is important that the seeds remain neat and without cracks in the surface. It may be an advantage to dimension with a larger air volume so that drying can be carried out at a temperature of max. 5 degrees. Too much heat can cause large seeds to shrivel and crack.

Drying bags and drying boxes for small batches

Especially when it comes to gluten-free production, drying bags are a good choice because, in addi-tion to their use for drying, they also form the packaging when the product is sent to the customer. This avoids contamination from other batches. Drying boxes with a perforated bottom are another option when it comes to small batches for human consumption.

Mobile solutions

The report describes various mobile solutions for the drying process, e.g., drying in wagons and flat-bed drying in a mobile canal with round arches. Drying wagons with a stirring machine can also be a relevant solution for food crops, but also here the temperature must be kept below 5 degrees to pre-serve the quality of the raw material.

The report is authored by national advisor Henning Sjørslev Lyngvig, SEGES Innovation.

Report: Drying small quantities of crops for human consumption (pdf 15 pages)