One Grain Lot, Two Uses. When Cleaning Can Support Sale and Feed

Keep useful grain out of the waste stream

When a harvested lot contains useful grain outside the main sale portion, cleaning can give that grain a separate destination instead of sending it out with dust and trash. A sale-and-feed split is worth considering when the main fraction meets the buyer’s requirements and the secondary grain has a practical livestock use supported by feed evaluation.

Choose two destinations—not just two piles

Start with the intended buyer and the intended animals. Compare the sale fraction with that buyer’s requirements. For the secondary grain, identify who could use it and whether it fits the animals’ diet before assigning it feed value.

Two situations lead to different decisions:

– A separately collected grain fraction has a potential livestock user. Keep it apart from dust and non-grain waste and evaluate it as a feed ingredient.
– The removed stream is dust, chaff and trash, or there is no practical feed destination. Do not count it as a second useful grain product simply because it came through the cleaner.

Consider the value of both usable outputs against the processing and separate handling they require. A secondary fraction deserves attention because it may replace another feed ingredient—not merely because it adds another pile to sell.

How airflow helps retain separate grain fractions

Metra ADS and ADS-CDC are useful options when the separation depends on how material responds to airflow. Kernel mass, shape, dimensions and density all affect that response; the machines do not simply weigh individual kernels.

Adjustable airflow tunes the separation to the material. Adjustable dividers direct grain into selected outputs, allowing useful grain fractions to remain separate rather than combining everything outside the main stream into one reject pile. In the CDC configuration, dedicated waste outlets collect dust, chaff and other impurities.

The useful result is separate material for separate decisions: grain to evaluate for sale, secondary grain to evaluate for feed, and unwanted material kept apart from both.

Give the secondary grain a feed evaluation

Physical separation selects material; feed evaluation determines whether and how to use it for the intended animals.

For ruminants such as cattle and sheep, NDSU’s guidance on alternative feeds recommends assessing energy, protein and major minerals to build a balanced diet. It recommends wet chemistry analysis – laboratory testing of nutrient content—for alternative feeds. Use those results with the person balancing the ration to judge the secondary grain’s usefulness and value.

Sample the separately held feed fraction, not the original unsorted lot. For bulk concentrates, NDSU’s feed-sampling guidance recommends:

– Combine material from at least 10 to 15 areas of the feed lot into one composite sample.
– Mix without allowing particles to separate by size.
– Send at least 1 pound, or a quart, to the laboratory.

Those quantities are for laboratory feed analysis. A nutrient report does not answer contamination questions. For sprouted grain with mold concerns, Iowa State advises inspecting for mold damage and considering mycotoxin testing. Cleaning itself does not establish feed safety.

Try the split with your own grain

If you have a potential sale destination and a livestock use in mind, Metra can help explore the separation with a free test of your grain. You do not need to choose a machine first. The team uses your sample to demonstrate the process, evaluate the cleaned and removed fractions, and recommend equipment and settings for your intended outputs, throughput and site needs.

Contact [info@graincleaner.com](mailto:info@graincleaner.com) to discuss keeping a sale fraction and a separate grain fraction for feed evaluation. Your Metra manager will confirm sample quantity, shipping arrangements and any associated costs before you send material.