As we wrap up our latest bulk grain order this topic is on my mind. The reality of any food storage is the risk of pests and this includes grains. We want our food to be clean from harmful pesticides, fungicides, excess debris, harmful seed oils, excessive sweetness, etc. That is why we choose to buy organic whole grains and mill our own flour.
A lot of sellers of whole grains do not mention pest prevention, kind of taboo. Personally I would rather you prevent an infestation via overkill in protection than be stuck trying to eliminate a pest issue.
Good quality grains have been "Triple Cleaned," which does leave them pretty darn pest free! However if you want to keep on hand a larger quantity than you will go through in 2-3 months, I recommend treating your grains.
Don't get overwhelmed, it is really quite simple; you do not have to pay the exorbitant price to have someone else do this for you. Our price for Hard Red Spring bulk 50#/1.30 per pound or Red Fife bulk 50#/1.80 per pound vs a couple quality sources- pre-treated, bucketed, at $2.64 to $3.44/pound for an unnamed variety of organic hard red wheat. Why not spend your money on the modern, ancient or heirloom berry you really like and treat it yourself for so much less? Plus the bucket and lid are indefinitely reusable so only the O2 absorbers are an expense each time.
Here's what you'll need:
5 gallon food grade buckets (Atwoods is currently $3.99 and so is Tractor Supply), gamma seal lids (Here's a link to my best source-best deal is bulk), and Oxygen Absorbers/O2 absorbers (Here's a link to a U.S. company with product made in Vietnam-most are made in China-free shipping over $35).
One 5 gallon bucket holds about 27-28 pounds, so a 50 pound bag will be 2- 5 gallon buckets, close to equally divided for the best results from your O2 absorber.
Then you'll place 2000cc, or 300cc/gallon, oxygen absorber in the bucket and leave it there for minimally 4-7 days, from what I have read. There is a lot of varied information. I also read 21-28 days, so 4-28 days is the range I ride in. But remember, your grains from The Simply Filled Pantry are already Triple Cleaned so if you go on the short end of 4-7, I would not worry.
What does Triple Cleaned even mean? Well, here is the answer I have from our now sole source of grains:
1. Air Screener, which blows a stream of air across the falling grain to remove lighter-weight impurities like chaff, dust, dead insects, etc.
2. The Gravity Table vibrates and has a series of sifter screens, from large to small, to remove sticks, stones, weed seeds, dirt clods, damaged grain or incorrect grain, etc.
3. Color Sorter, which removes any other foreign specimen that may be the same size as the grain and, therefore, was not removed with the gravity table. The color sorter can be set for the exact shade of the grain we want; every other color is removed.
Note: Steps 1 and 2 are often done with one machine called a Clipper Mill.
However, once in a while, you may find a stray weed seed or hull. The cleaning process is imperfect; sometimes, the smallest weed seeds are tough to remove. You should not need to clean the grains further.
There you go! If you can get yourself set with some buckets, O2 absorbers, and gamma lids, you can buy grains in bulk and save quite a bit!
Here's a link to dive into Oxygen Absorber details-one being you want to get all your buckets filled and ready to just drop these in one after another. Otherwise they will start trying to absorb the oxygen in the room and go bad or at least less effective!