Customer Testimonial
<< Back to MapPressure Curing® Wheat, Beans and Corn
It was consistent in moisture clear through the bin. The consistency was amazing to me. Generally (with other types of drying bins) it is drier is some spots and wetter in others.
David and Steve Yarick
Rich Hill, MO
Eliminating Hidden-Dollar Losses
A.F., Steve an David Yarick grow 4,000 acres of wheat, soybeans and corn near Rich Hill, Missouri, about 60 miles south of Kansas City. They are blessed with a relatively long growing season which allows them to double-crop wheat and beans. They are also usually blessed with adequate rainfall to produce good yields, although Mother Nature often delivers a wet Spring and Fall with little precipitation in between.
With considerable acerage to harvest and ever-present weather risk, Yaricks concluded the bottleneck created by their convential bin dryers was no longer acceptable. The need to haul so much grain directly to market at harvest time lows was problematic as well. Yaricks were also searching for a way to improve yields on their double-crop soybeans by combining wheat and planting beans earlier.
To meet these objectives Yaricks erected two 48’ diameter CMC Pressure Cure® systems with a total curing capacity of 53,000 bushels. To date, the system has met or exceeded their expectations and is paying off in several important ways.
Yarick's primary motivation for combining their wheat early was to benefit soybean yields. However, the results they have witnessed have convinced them that combining wheat at 20% green moisture will add to the botom line on both crops. In 1998 Yaricks combined their Soft Red WinterWheat at 18-20% green moisture and Pressure Cured® it to a uniform 13% moisture in exactly 3 weeks. Steve observed "It was consistent in moisture clear through the bin. The consistency was amazing to me. Generally (with other types of drying bins) it is drier is some spots and wetter in others." Yaricks results were confirmed when they marketed their Pressure Cured® wheat. "The guy at the mill kept re-checking his moisture tester because he couldn’t believe every load we brought in was exactly 13.0% moisture."
Steve is also convinced they are profitting from test weight retention on the portion of their wheat crop which was Pressure Cured®. "The test weight was 58.5 to 59 pounds/bushel. Dad hauled a load out of another bin...some wheat that was cut dry that we didn’t run through the Pressure Cure® bins. It was 12.5% moisture but the test weight was 57 pounds, which makes no sense unless you know what happened to it. That is proof positive we retained test weight by combining it at 18-20% green moisture and curing in down to 13%.
Yaricks are marketing their wheat to a flour mill in the region which demands high quality, high test weight wheat. Wheat under 58 pounds is docked for low test weight. According to Steve, "If we had cut it all dry it all would have been around 57 pounds, but by curing it at 18-20%, we gained 1.5 to 2 pounds per bushel...it all adds up."
Yaricks feel the Pressure Cure® concept enables producers to reduce weather risk and the hidden-dollar losses which often occur at harvest time. "We had two fields of wheat left to cut-really good wheat- when a storm passed through with lots of wind, dumping 3-4 inches of rain on us. By the time we got back to the field we were cutting, we had lost 10 bushels/acre in yield and wheat was sprouting in the head. If we hadn’t had Pressure Cure® bins...we would have had 80% of the wheat left waiting for it to dry in the field."
In 1998 Yaricks combined about 900 acres of wheat. If 80% had still been in the field, or 720 acres, the 10 bushel/acre loss to Mother Nature would have meant a total of 7,200 bushels left on the ground. At even $3.00 wheat, the loss which was AVOIDED because this wheat was Pressure Cured®, would amount to $21,600.
Farmers who Pressure Cure® often report that eliminating hidden-dollar loses due to weather, low test weight and excessive shrink (to name just a few) is providing a very attractive return on investment. A.F. agrees, "You don’t get many opportunities (at harvest time) in this country or about anywhere else. When a crop is ready to go, you had better get out there after it."
As wheat harvest progressed Yaricks quickly shifted their focus to no-tilling their double-crop soybeans. "The beautiful part of it for us is we gain a week to 10 days in planting time with every acre of wheat we cut at 18-20% says Steve. As those who double-crop are well aware, earlier planting equates to more bushels of beans in the Fall." For this reason Yaricks are excited about the multiplying of benefits which occurs when utilizing their systems for both wheat and beans. As Steve points out, "You can look at all the Univeristy charts, and planting after June 10th the yield on soybeans drops off dramatically. So if we can get the beans in the ground by mid-June, we are bushels ahead."
1998 produced a good soybean crop, but a difficult harvest for farmers in Western Missouri. Once again, Yarrick’s benefited from the ability to combine early (and wet) and get the crop out of a hostile environment. "We had a real wet soybean harvest last fall" recalls Steve. "We cut most of our beans at 16-18% moisture. If we hadn’t had a place to go with them, we’d maybe still be cutting beans." Instead, the bean crop was combined and Pressure Cured® to 13% moisture in a matter of days. " I was really amazed at how fast it dried the beans," says A.F.
Pressure Curing® soybeans will pay dividends regardless of the weather forecast. In dry Falls, combining beans early will reduce shatter loss, splits and loss of water weight from excessive field dry down.
After using Pressure Cure® bins on wheat and soybeans, Yaricks turned their attention to corn harvest. Now timeliness and combining efficiency became most important and their Pressure Cure® systems did not disappoint. As many farmers report, the investment in CMC systems effectively increases combine capacity due to improved efficiency in the field. "Before, we could only combine about half a day and quit because the dryer bin would have to catch up. The Pressure Cure® bins doubled our combine capacity."
A.F. doesn’t feel that drying in town is the solution either. "We harvest alot of acres with one combine, and we can’t afford to have a combine wait while a truck stands in line in town." Pressure Curing®, on the other hand, offers a streamlined process which can save hours of time every day: fill the combine, fill the truck (or wagon), fill the bin. Steve adds, "You can start earlier in the morning and stay later at night."
While Yaricks are impressed with a whole new level of harvest efficiency, they are also impressed with the integrity of the Pressure Cured® corn compared to heat-dried corn. They are confident that when the corn is marketed, they will benefit from high quality and more net bushels due to high test weight.
A.F., Steve and David Yarick are enjoying a new way of farming. They are able to reduce weather risk without investing in bigger machinery. They are able to increase bushels and quality without increasing inputs. They are able to farm more land, farm it better, and increase profitability. A.F. credits their Pressure Cure® systems for making this possible: "They have done what CMC said they were going to do."
