The dockage assessment process doesn't need to feel like a mystery. So we've produced two new videos that break down dockage basics for farmers and lay out the official process for determining dockage in canola as set by the Canadian Grain Commission.
CCGA created the videos to answer farmers' questions about dockage, including:
- dockage assessment essentials – what constitutes dockage?
- the official process of cleaning a sample and assessing for dockage, including sieve types and sizes, as well as the steps the elevator follows when determining dockage
- commonly used terms, such as conspicuous admixture and commercially clean
- farmers' rights and responsibilities under the
Canada Grain Act (which includes the right of the person delivering the grain to watch the dockage assessment at any licensed primary elevator).
The percentage of dockage in a canola delivery can have a significant impact on your bottom line; the more dockage in a truckload, the less actual canola it contains. By increasing your knowledge of the dockage assessment process laid out in the
Official Grain Grading Guide, you can better follow along and have confidence in the outcome.
Canola Dockage Assessment Process for Farmers (5:29) details the process of assessing dockage in a canola sample:
Canola Dockage Basics for Farmers (5:49) explains what dockage is and how it affects the value of your delivery:
A larger awareness initiative
These resources are part of a larger initiative; we also work with provincial canola associations to increase farmers' understanding of what to expect at the elevator, including the processes and grading factors that impact canola quality and final payment. Activities in 2017 included hands-on grading workshops in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and the publication of factsheets and articles on dockage and grading factors related to colour through
Canola Digest.
The videos will also be included in a new website we will launch in Spring 2018:
www.knowyourgrade.ca