The Canadian Grain Commission is reminding farmers that disputes over grain grades offered at the elevator can be settled quickly and inexpensively through the Subject to Inspector’s Grade and Dockage service.
This year’s late harvest, combined with variable weather conditions across much of the West, means grades for most crop types are all over the map.
Disputes over grade are usually more common in years when crop quality is variable, says the commission’s Daryl Beswitherick.
Farmers who disagree with the grades they receive at the elevator can ask the commission to review them. The commission’s grade rulings are binding and are usually returned in a few days.
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The service costs around $50.
“If producers go to deliver a load of grain into a primary elevator … and they disagree with the grade, dockage, protein or moisture on that sample, they can request that the primary elevator send a sample to the Canadian Grain Commission for an official grade or an official ruling,” Beswitherick said.
“The only thing is that they (the producer and the elevator agent) have to agree on is that the sample they take is representative of that load.”
Producers should have their loads sampled before they unload to ensure the sample is accurate.
Growers should also ensure that the elevator examines every sample and offers a grade before the load is dumped.
If time permits, growers should consider sending samples to a third party lab before they make deliveries.
Waiting until the last minute for grain to be graded can be frustrating.
“This time of year, somehow, they (the elevators) always seem to grade hard,” said Earl Kovach, a grain grower at Kipling, Sask.
“It’s almost expected that way.”
Beswitherick said samples sent by courier to a CGC service centre normally arrive the following day.
Commission inspectors will normally issue their rulings on grade, dockage, moisture and protein content within a couple of days.
CGC’s official ruling is returned to the elevator and the producer.
