Stored Grain Insect Pests

The GRDC has key investments in stored grain pest research. These include:

CRC for National Plant Biosecurity. CRC Plant Biosecurity aims to 1) Safeguard Australia's plant industries, 2) Ensure food security for Australian consumers and 3) Improve market access for agricultural exporters.

Stored Grain Research Laboratory (SGRL). The SGRL has helped the grain industry develop a series of sound, cost-effective and safe technologies to maintain or enhance the quality of grain during storage. The Laboratory has a multi-disciplinary skill base and its capacity to effectively respond and develop industrially acceptable storage strategies to chemical and biological issues is a result of its unique close association with the Australian grain industry.

Information on stored insect pests are as follows:

Links to general information on stored pest research
• Stored grain insects: a rogue’s gallery. Detecting the presence of insect pests as early as possible can stop the demise of stored grain quality and quantity. 
• CSIRO Entomology
• Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia - Pest and Disease Information Service (PaDIS). The PaDIS provides information on pests and diseases that affect gardens, households and, community and industry wellbeing in Western Australia.
• Insect pests and entomology in Western Australia.  
• Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Queensland
• Crop management principals: Insect management. Contains a range of management strategy resources for a number of pest insects. 
• Grain insect pests
• Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service
• Quarantine: Plant pests and diseases of concern
• Pests and Diseases Image Library (Australian Government)

• Control - NSW Department of Primary Industries: Summer crop production guide 2007: Part 4 – grain storage and receival standards. This publication contains information to assist with the key agronomic decisions made in the production of grain sorghum, maize, mungbean and sunflower. Where possible recommendations for both dryland and irrigated production systems have been included. For each crop the topics of; paddock selection, sowing time, plant population, row spacing, hybrid characteristics, nutrition, subsoil constraints, irrigation, weed management, diseases, insect pests, harvest and marketing have been addressed. In addition to crop production recommendations, at the back of this guide is a summary on the requirements for safe storage of summer grains and receival standards for their delivery into various market segments.

• Department of Primary Industries, Queensland:  Insect control in stored grain. Topics include options for different markets, grains and storages, planning and inspection for grain storage insect management, storages and equipment - Treating for insects, chemical insecticides in stored grains to control insects, fumigation - Insect control in stored grains with fumigation, controlled atmospheres - Insect control in stored grains storage using controlled atmospheres, aeration for cooling – to control insects in stored grains, insect identification – stored grain insect pests, resistance and failure of insect control treatments in stored grains, commercial and preparations of insecticides and fumigants approved for farm-stored grains in Queensland.

• CSIRO Stored Grain Research Laboratory - Storage hints. Includes information on aeration, fumigation, chemical protectants and organic storage.
• Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia - stored grain protection publications. These publications are presented courtesy of Queensland Department of Primary Industries, New South Wales Agriculture and Agriculture Western Australia as part of a collaborative National approach, supported by the Grain Research and Development Corporation, to minimise grain insect infestation in storages and export shipments. Copyright and liability resides with the author organisation. 
• Grain handling and storage for pulses. Contains information on loading and unloading, cooling processes, preventing moisture migration, insect control using fumigation and insecticide application, further reading and Farmnotes.

General Stored Grains References/Publications

AACC (1992). Storage of Cereal Grains and Their Products. Saucer DB (Ed), 4th Edition, American Association of Cereal Chemists, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA. 615 pp.

CSIRO (1983). Preservation of Stored Cereals: Proceedings of the Australian Development Assistance Course on the Preservation of Stored Cereals, Vols. 1 and 2, Champ BR and Highley E (Eds). CSIRO Australia.

Kondinin Group (2002). Stalk to Store: the on-farm grain handling and storage manual, Nugent T (Ed). Kondinin Group, Cloverdale, WA. 272 pp.

Rees D (2004). Insects of Stored Products. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Vic. 181 pp.

Rees D (2007). Insects of Stored Grain: A Pocket Reference. 2nd edition, CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Vic. 78 pp.

Simmonds DH (1989). Wheat and wheat quality in Australia. CSIRO Australia. 300 pp.

Stored Grain Management. GRDC and Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Queensland, 2005

Grain Storage in Australia. CSIRO Australia, 2004.

Stored Grain in Australia: Proceedings of the Australian Postharvest Technical Conferences. CSIRO Australia, 2004.

Managing On-farm Grain Storage. Quality Wheat CRC Limited, 1999.