Grain Journal

Employees want to come home the same way they went in.

In her latest safety column, Cadrien Livingston explores how leading indicators and personal ownership can help create a culture where safety is more than checking a box — it's about ensuring everyone's destination is home.

"The goal is not fewer incidents; it is preventing the conditions that make them possible in the first place."

Congratulations to Cadrien on her new role as director of safety at Klinger Companies. We're excited to have her continue sharing her insights with Grain Journal readers.

Read her "Destination Home" column from the May/June issue of Grain Journal, now available online: https://ow.ly/Jx8A50Z8TvM

Every issue of Grain Journal ends with a Parting Shot — a photograph celebrating the people, places and stories that make our industry unique.

This issue features the GrainCorp silos at Devenish, Victoria, Australia. Completed in 2018, the mural by Queensland artist Cam Scale became the 10th painted silo in Victoria and the 20th addition to the Australian Silo Art Trail.

The artwork depicts a World War I nurse alongside a modern-day medic, reflecting the changing roles of women in the military, while also honoring the Australian Light Horse cavalry and mounted infantry of World War I.

Keep an eye on the back page. You never know where the next Parting Shot will take you.

📸 Photo by Bruce Selyem

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Many grain companies assume that hiring a third-party carrier transfers the risk.

According to Colin Fettig, risk managing consultant at Berkley Agribusiness, that's not always the case.

"If your operation relies on third-party transportation in any form, now is the time to review or establish your agreements and ensure they reflect the realities of today's risk environment. When an accident happens, it is too late to wish a contract had been in place."

Before your next load moves, ask yourself:

• Are handshake agreements leaving responsibilities unclear?
• Are your carriers' insurance limits adequate for a serious accident?
• When was the last time you reviewed carrier safety ratings and CSA scores?
• Are vehicles ever loaned or leased without clearly defined contractual protections?
• Are you assuming transportation risk ends once a load leaves your facility?

This article is now available online as part of Grain Journal's May/June Transportation issue: https://ow.ly/eaFn50Z6KgL

One of the most expensive mistakes a grain facility can make is treating expansion as a future problem.

"If we double our storage five years from now, where will it go?"

That question influenced the design of Schiff Farms' new rail-loading facility in Delaware.

As the project team put it: "We try to make sure future additions are going to go well and get planned out correctly, so you don't build yourself into a corner."

Future storage, drying capacity and additional receiving infrastructure were all mapped out before the first phase was built.

See how the team planned for future growth before the first bin was even filled:
https://ow.ly/sOcN50Z6nA5

The order looked completely legitimate.

Real company name. Real employees. Professional communication. No obvious red flags.

The shipment was sent.

Payment never came.

A feed supplier lost $250,000 worth of product after fraudsters carefully replicated a legitimate company’s identity using a slightly altered email domain.

Federal agencies say these scams are becoming more common across agriculture — and AI is making them harder to detect.

Here are some of the warning signs grain and feed companies are being told to watch for:

The Rise of Ag Fraud A feed supplier received a request from what appeared to be a legitimate customer. The email address matched the company’s name. The website checked out. The communication was consistent and professional. There were no obvious red flags.

Registration for the annual Liquid Feed Symposium in September has now opened, with AFIA encouraging industry members to attend to discuss growth opportunities and education of the liquid feed industry.

The year's theme is "Feeding Independence, Growing Innovation.”

Read the full story on Grain Journal: GrainJournal.com/article/1140133/registration-is-now-open-for-afias-2026-liquid-feed-symposium

A Minnesota high school senior has been announced as the recipient of the 2026-2027 Soy Scholarship in recognition of his leadership roles with 4-H and FFA programs along with significant volunteer work.

Read the full story on Grain Journal: GrainJournal.com/article/1140121/minnesota-student-receives-asa-basf-soy-scholarship

Novin AgriTech, a startup run by an associate professor of plant breeding and genetics at Purdue University, is working to develop novel traits for cereal crops to increase yield, improve sustainability, and enhance resistance to Fusarium head blight.

The company has been given a $174,906 Small Business Innovation Research Phase I grant from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture to progress its research.

“The project will reinforce Novin AgriTech’s positioning as a platform company,” Mohsen Mohammadi said. “Our mission is to empower the cereal crop ecosystem with practical, scalable and future-ready solutions that tackle the evolving challenges of food security, health, resource efficiency, and crop resilience to biotic and abiotic stresses.”

Read the full story on Grain Journal: GrainJournal.com/article/1140143/novin-agritech-receives-usda-grant-to-develop-novel-traits-for-wheat-accelerate-trait-integration