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Flaxseed: Grading factors

Chapter 11. Flaxseed (PDF, 872 KB)
Full list of grading factors

B

Broken (BKN)

Broken seeds are pieces of flaxseed that are less than three-quarters the size of a whole seed.

Important:

  • Flaxseed have separate tolerances for Broken.
  • Broken seeds of flaxseed are also included in Total damage.

C

Contaminated grain

Important: Wear gloves and a mask to handle any sample that is suspected of containing contaminated grain.

Grain is contaminated for the purposes of the Canada Grain Act if the grain contains any substance in sufficient quantity that the grain is either

  1. adulterated for the purposes of the Food and Drugs Act; or 
  2. contaminated within the meaning of the regulations made under section 51 of the Safe Foods for Canadians Act.

Procedures

If a sample is suspected of being contaminated, the sample should be submitted to the Canadian Grain Commission. Determination as to whether grain is contaminated will be made by the Grain Research Laboratory in consultation with the Chief Grain Inspector for Canada. Samples deemed to be contaminated are graded: Flaxseed, Sample Condemned.

D

Damage (DMG)

Damaged includes

  • Seeds that are heated, broken, frosted, green, sprouted, shriveled or otherwise damaged
  • Seeds with fractured seed coats

Important: Seeds are not considered damaged if they

  • Have any side portions of the boll membrane attached but are otherwise sound
  • Appear scabbed or blistered but are otherwise sound

Procedures

  1. Divide the sample to the appropriate representative portion.
  2. Handpick the representative portion for visually damaged seeds and suspect damaged seeds
  3. Determine the percentage concentration by weight for the visually damaged seeds.
  4. The suspect damaged seeds are cut or are placed on a strip of masking tape and crushed with a seed roller to expose the cotyledons. The number of damaged seeds is converted to a weight percentage by weighing an equal number of sound seeds and dividing the weight of the sound seeds by the weight of the representative portion. If any heated seeds are detected or if the sample has a heated odour, refer to the procedure for assessment of heated.
  5. Add the two percentages of damage together to determine the total damage.

E

Earth pellets

  • Hard earth pellets are pellets that do not crumble under light pressure. See Stones.
  • Soft earth pellets are pellets that crumble under light pressure. See Soft earth pellets.

Ergot (ERG)

Ergot is a plant disease producing elongated fungal bodies with a purplish-black exterior, a purplish-white to off-white interior, and a relatively smooth surface texture.

Excreta (EXCR)

Excrement from any animal including mammals, birds and insects.

Important : Wear gloves and a mask to handle any samples that you suspect may contain excreta.

Extraneous material

Can be defined as glass, metal, wood, plastic or any other material not already defined in the Official Grain Grading Guide.

F

Fertilizer pellets (FERT PLTS)

Fertilizer pellets are a manufactured plant nutrient product used by producers in the production of grain. They are typically small, round or irregular shaped and usually white, grey, brown, pink or reddish in colour.

Procedures

  • Handpick any fertilizer pellets and determine the concentration basis the net working sample.
  • Fertilizer pellets are assessed as stones when the concentration does not exceed 1.0% of the net sample weight.
  • Samples containing fertilizer pellets in excess of 1.0% of the net sample weight are graded Flaxseed, Held IP Suspect Contaminated Grain.

Fireburnt (FBNT)

Samples that show any evidence of being charred or scorched by fire are considered fireburnt. Evidence includes odour, pieces of charred wood, and so on. Fireburnt seeds pop when crushed.

Procedures

Samples considered fireburnt are graded Flaxseed, Sample CW/CE, Account Fireburnt.

H

Heated kernels (HTD)

Heated refers to seeds with discoloured cotyledons ranging in colour from orange to dark brown depending on the severity of heat damage. The seed coats of heated seeds are usually shiny brown or black. Severely heated seeds usually have a heated odour.

Procedures

  1. The cleaned sample is divided to a representative portion, depending on the concentration of heated in the sample.
  2. Those seeds having shiny brown to black seed coats are separated by hand as potential heated seeds.
  3. The potentially heated seeds are cut or are placed on a strip of masking tape and crushed with a seed roller to expose the cotyledons.
  4. Seeds having discoloured cotyledons ranging in colour from orange to dark brown are counted to determine the percentage of heated seeds.
  5. When crushing samples, the number of heated seeds is converted to a weight percentage by weighing an equal number of sound seeds and dividing the weight of the sound seeds by the weight of the representative portion.
  6. Heated seeds of other grains are included in the tolerance for Heated

I

Inseparable seeds (INSEP SDS)

Inseparable seeds are domestic seeds such as mustard seed, canola, whole shrunken or broken kernels of other grains and weed seeds such as wild oats and lady’s thumb that remain in the sample after cleaning.

O

Odour (ODOR)

There is no numeric tolerance for odour. Consider

  • The basic quality of the sample
  • The type and degree of the odour
  • The presence of visible residue causing the odour
Heated, fireburnt and odour for flax
If odour is the grade determinant and there is: Then the grade is:
A distinct objectionable odour not associated with the quality of the grain, but not heated or fireburnt Flaxseed, Sample CW/CE Account Odour
A distinct heated odour Flaxseed, Sample CW/CE Account Heated
A distinct fireburnt odour Flaxseed, Sample CW/CE Account Fireburnt

Other classes of flaxseed (OCL)

  • In brown flaxseed, other classes of flaxseed refers to classes with yellow seed coats.
  • In yellow flaxseed, other classes of flaxseed refers to classes with brown seed coats.

S

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (SCL)

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a fungus producing hard masses of fungal tissue, called sclerotia. The sclerotia vary in size and shape, have a course surface texture, vary in exterior color from dark black to gray to white and have a pure white interior.

Soft earth pellets (SEP)

Soft earth pellets are

  • Earth pellets that crumble into fine dust under light pressure, using a finger only—if they do not crumble, they are considered Stones
  • Any non-toxic material of similar consistency

Procedures

  1. Handpick soft earth pellets from a representative portion of the cleaned sample.
  2. Soft earth pellets are removed as dockage. See Composition of dockage.

Stones (STNS)

Stones are hard shale, coal, hard earth pellets, and any other nontoxic materials of similar consistency. Fertilizer pellets are assessed as stones when constituting 1.0% or less of the net sample weight. (See Fertilizer pellets for specific procedures to be followed when samples contain fertilizer pellets.)

Procedures

  1. Handpick stones from a representative portion of the cleaned sample.
  2. Determine stone concentration in the net sample.
  • Samples of grain grown in western Canada containing stones in excess of “basic grade” tolerances, up to 2.5% are graded Flaxseed, Rejected “basic grade” Account Stones. The “basic grade” refers to a grade established in the Canada Grain Regulations (grades listed in the first column in grade determination tables) that would have been assigned to the sample if it contained no stones.
  • Samples of grain grown in eastern Canada containing stones in excess of grade tolerances are degraded to lower grades. Samples containing stones in excess of the tolerance of the lowest grade established by regulation up to 2.5% are graded Flaxseed, Sample Canada Eastern Account Stones.
  • Samples of western and eastern Canadian grain containing more than 2.5% stones are graded Flaxseed, Sample Salvage.
Examples: Western Canada
Primary grade determination table Flaxseed, (CW)
Grade name Stones %
number 1 Canada 0.05
number 2 Canada 0.05
number 3 Canada 0.05

Basic grade: Flaxseed, number 1 CW

Grade in western Canada if stones found
If the above sample contained Grade in western Canada
0.08% stones Flaxseed, Rejected number 1 CW Account Stones
3.0% stones Flaxseed, Sample Salvage
Examples: Eastern Canada
Primary grade determination table Flaxseed CE
Grade name Stones %
number 1 CE 0.05
number 2 CE 0.05
number 3 CE 0.05

Basic grade: Flaxseed, number 1 CE

Grade in eastern Canada if stones found
If the above sample contained Grade in eastern Canada
0.08% stones Flaxseed, Sample CE Account Stones
3.0% stones Flaxseed, Sample Salvage

T

Test weight (TWT)

Test weight is the weight of a known volume of grain expressed in kilograms per hectolitre. For procedures, see Chapter 1 of this guide, Test weight.

Treated seed and other chemical substances

Treated seed

Treated seed is grain that has been adulterated with an agricultural chemical for agronomic purposes. The types of agricultural chemicals used to treat seed include pesticides, fungicides and inoculants. These seed dressings contain a dye to render the treated seed visually conspicuous. The colour of the dye varies depending upon the type of treatment and the type of grain. The current Canadian colour standard for pesticide and fungicide seed treatments for cereal (including corn) is red or pink. The colour standard for pesticide and fungicide seed treatments for canola is blue; however, green has also been used. Pulse crop (including soybeans) pesticide and fungicide seed treatments are typically blue or green. The coatings or stains may appear greasy or powdery and the surface area covered may range from tiny flecks to complete coverage.

Other chemical substances

Other chemical substances refers to any chemical residues either adhering to the kernel or remaining in the sample and to samples having a chemical odour of any kind.

Important: Wear gloves and a mask to handle any samples that you suspect may contain contaminated grain

Procedures

If a sample is suspected of being coated with a pesticide, desiccant, inoculant or if the sample contains evidence of any foreign chemical substance other than fertilizer pellets, the sample shall be graded Flaxseed, Held IP Suspect Contaminated Grain.

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