Preserving Peanut Quality Under Hermetic Storage
Peanuts travel long distances and often remain in storage for extended periods. During that time, quality loss is a persistent concern. Rising free fatty acids, flavour deterioration and mould risks
Hordeum vulgare
Barley
Barley is a quality-critical grain where preservation directly affects processing performance and market acceptance. For brewing and malting applications, even minor storage deviations can lead to rejection, making controlled bulk storage essential.
Barley is typically dried to specific moisture levels before storage, yet maintaining those conditions over time remains challenging. Excess moisture increases the risk of mold growth and mycotoxin formation, while overly aggressive handling or pressure can cause grain breakage. For maltsters and brewers, broken kernels beyond strict thresholds are unacceptable. Conventional fumigation and storage methods often struggle to balance moisture control, pest management and physical grain integrity. As barley is frequently stored and transported in bulk, long-term preservation demands precise atmospheric control without compromising grain structure or safety.
Challenges in barley preservation
Precision required
Barley preservation requires balancing biological safety with physical integrity. Moisture levels above accepted thresholds promote fungal growth, including Penicillium species capable of producing ochratoxin A, a serious food safety risk. At the same time, excessive vacuum or pressure during packaging can cause kernel breakage, leading to quality rejection by maltsters.
Insect infestation remains a persistent threat during storage, traditionally addressed through chemical fumigation such as phosphine. However, these treatments raise residue concerns and offer limited long-term protection. Temperature fluctuations and moisture instability further complicate bulk storage, especially over extended periods. Effective barley preservation demands accurate pressure control, stable atmospheric conditions and a residue-free pest control strategy.
- Kernel breakage
- Moisture control
- Mycotoxin risk
- Insect infestation
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The VacQPack solution for barley
Measured control
VacQPack protects barley using bulk-sized Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) with precise pressure regulation to prevent grain damage. High-barrier EVOH liners drastically reduce oxygen and water vapor transmission, stabilizing moisture and inhibiting fungal growth. Once acceptable moisture levels are confirmed, COâ‚‚ or nitrogen is applied to eliminate insects organically without affecting grain quality. The VacQPack system continuously measures and controls internal conditions, ensuring compliance with strict brewing and malting standards while enabling safe, long-term storage without chemical fumigation.
- Consistent product quality and taste
- Reduced food loss and waste
- Full control over product safety
- Optimized total cost of ownership (TCO)
- Non-chemical, organic treatment
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Best practice
Learn how customers across different commodities use VacQPack as a best practice for quality protection. By applying natural MAP, they prevent insects, control moisture, and safeguard product value throughout storage and transport.
Particularly on humid and hot areas, problems like condensation, variation of moisture content, oxidation and in some cases insect infestation, are common on the difficult task of keeping the quality of soybean seeds during storage.
The refrigeration is the conventional technique for preservation, but it requires a great deal of investment on infrastructures and implies significant expenditures on energy. Besides, once the seed leaves the refrigeration mode, gets again vulnerable and enters in a rapid degradation process.
Infisght from our research expert
Marie-José
Research Expert
m.vanlitsenburg@vacqpack.com
Our research Expert Marie-José translates scientific studies into practical MAP insights, helping producers safeguard quality from origin to arrival.
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