Cereal Grain Quality

Understanding Low Falling Numbers

While issues with low falling numbers (FN) are not a common occurrence in Oregon, environmental conditions in a given crop year can originate pockets of low FN. Wheat breeders work diligently on varieties that can help avoid low FN problems. Beyond variety development, though, understanding why the falling number test may generate a low number on a wheat sample can be helpful.

There are four known causes of low falling number in the Pacific Northwest.

Green Kernels - high risk of causing low falling number
Preharvest Sprouting (PHS)- high risk of causing low falling number. PHS is caused by moisture after the grain has matured before harvest has been completed.
Late-maturity Alpha-amylase (LMA)- moderate risk of causing low falling number. LMA is caused by a cold shock at the soft dough stage of grain development.
Non-Alpha-amylase Induced Low falling number (NAIL)- moderate to low risk of causing low falling number. NAIL is caused by stress early in grain development shortly after anthesis is complete. There are no obvious signs of NAIL, however low protein content, 8% or less, is common with NAIL.

Check out the guide below for more information and management considerations.

Falling Number Brochure

Cereal Quality Lab Renovation Complete

After years in the planning process, construction on the new Cereal Quality Lab on the Corvallis campus of Oregon State University is complete. Increasing capacity was one of the driving forces behind the rebuild and a reason for the Oregon Wheat Commission to commit funding to support the construction.

Construction consisted of tearing down the wall between the old bakery and the flexible storage space in the room next door. This simple change doubled the floor area of the space and allowed OSU to design the lab from scratch as a research and teaching facility. This new lab allows for tripled throughput in comparison to the old lab, allowing for noodles, cookies or pastries, and breads to run in the same day.