D&PL new seed handling a success
New technology mean value for producers
by Al Fava
Special to the DBJ
The process and equipment Delta and Pine Land Company (D&PL) is using to produce 250,000 seed-count units mark an
evolution in precision seed handling and packaging for the cotton seed industry.
“The new D&PL method of handling seed - from the delinted black-seed stage to the finished goods stage of 250,000
seed-count units - is unique in the cotton seed industry and brings added value to producers and distributors,” says Randy
Dismuke, Senior Vice President at D&PL.
Starting this year, D&PL Upland cotton varieties will be packaged in bags containing a minimum of 250,000 seeds. Boll
Box(tm) bulk delivery systems will contain a minimum of 8 million seeds. The only exceptions are Pima and Acala varieties,
which will continue to be packaged in traditional 50-pound bags. The new seed-count packaging from D&PL will help
standardize technology fees in individual seed-drop regions, simplify production planning for producers and make inventory
management more precise for distributors.
“Precision farming begins with seed-count packaging - another value offered by D&PL cotton seed products,” Dismuke
says. “Only D&PL can offer the value of world-class genetics, state-of-the-art transgenic technologies, expert technical
services, worldwide research and breeding, and 250,000 seed-count packaging in 2004.”
The evolution of seed handling and packaging began at D&PL three-and-a-half years ago with an intense evaluation of
the various seed sizes and densities among D&PL varieties, and a study of the company’s packaging plants, says Dismuke.
The result is a new way of handling and packaging seed that offers D&PL customers better flexibility on orders, timely
delivery of finished goods and more precise inventory management and production planning. D&PL has applied for a patent
on the entire process of handling and packaging seed in 250,000 seed-count units.
The new seed handling and packaging process utilizes existing, industry-standard machines as well as speciallydesigned
equipment manufactured for D&PL. Five packaging plants are equipped for the process: Aiken, Texas; Eloy, Arizona;
Scott, Mississippi, and two at Hollandale, Mississippi. Great care is taken on the front end, and at all stages during
the bagging process, through and including final bagging, to help achieve quality and consistency in the final product.
Delinted, black seed is checked for germination and mechanical damage before seed dressings are applied. The black
seed is packaged in 2,000-pound bulk corrugated boxes. Approximately 40 corrugated boxes form a lot of black seed.
Each lot of black seed is tagged with individual seed-counts per pound. A 10,000-bag order will require multiple lots of
black seed. To create finished goods, black lots with similar seed-counts per pound are chosen. If a variety has lots that
range in weight between 4,500 seeds per pound and 5,500 seeds per pound and the process begins with the selection of
the 4,500 seed-count lots, the next black lots chosen to fill the order will be ones with seed-counts closest to 4,500.
The black lots chosen to fill the order are placed, or staged, on a conveying system according to descending or ascending
seed-counts per pound and moved through the treating process. After the treating process, but prior to bagging, D&PL
has installed a computerized capture-and-count technology. Staging the lots according to descending or ascending seedcounts
per pound allows D&PL to easily identify deviations in seed counts and make adjustments during the process to
keep the weight range of lots to a narrow margin, says Charles Michell, vice president of U.S. operations at D&PL.
“We offer several different seed treatment options and have a large selection of varieties and technologies,” he says.“By staging the lots in black seed, we can offer our customers quicker turnaround on orders with more flexibility on seed
treatments.”
Treated seed is continuously vacuumed to a hopper that flows into a feeder tray containing 36 channels with a photo
eye at the end of each channel that counts the seed as it passes through to a scale hopper. These samples are counted at
a rate of 1 to 3 pounds per minute. The seed counter averages more than 80 samples per finished-good lot. Three consecutive
seed-count averages outside an established range prompt a bag weight change.
The first 10 samples that are captured and counted establish the seed-count average and target weight range for the
finished goods lot. By including a 1 percent over-fill in the target, D&PL ensures that all finished good bags are filled with
a minimum of 250,000 seeds.
“Because cotton seed has varying sizes and densities, one lot’s seed-count per pound may be greater, or smaller, than
another lot’s. This means bag weights will be slightly different from lot to lot, even though all bags will contain a minimum
of 250,000 seeds,” says Michell. “There will be numerous lots, each with their own seed count per pound.”
The bushel weight of the lot is also determined using the computerized optical counter. After the seed has been counted
and seeds per pound recorded, the seed is dropped into a bushel-weight container. This container has a known cubic
volume. Using the weight of the seed in this container and its known cubic volume, the bushel weight of the seed is calculated.
The bushel weight determines the bag size. The first ten samples measured at the computerized optical counter
sets the target bag size and continuous counting helps confirm that the correct bag size is being used.
“To accommodate the varying seed sizes and densities of our varieties, we are utilizing different bag sizes to package
our Upland cotton seed in,” he says. “The bushel weight captured will indicate to the person operating the bagger
which bag size to package the lot in.”
After being filled with seed, each bag will be check-weighed on a computerized scale that will automatically reject any
bag that is outside the predetermined weight range of the particular lot. In the new seed-count packaging from D&PL, all
bags within a given lot will indicate the same weight in the analysis label, however, the actual bag weights will always
exceed the weight printed on the label. Approximately 80 percent of the new D&PL seed-count bags will weigh very close
to 50 pounds.
“Using different bag sizes helps make sure that all bags will maintain a consistency in degree of fullness and shape,”
Michell says. “Regardless of the bag size and weight, all bags of D&PL seed will contain a minimum of 250,000 seeds.”
The process is complex and expensive, but it has to be in order to package in seed-count units correctly, according to
Michell.
“Could we accomplish our objective in a simpler system? Sure, but we thought it was important to invest in specialized
equipment and manpower to package in seed-count units the correct way,” he says. “The method D&PL is employing
to generate seed-count units is based on continuous counting of seeds per pound of every lot that travels through our
bagging plants, and no one else that we know of is doing that with cotton seed.”
To assist producers and distributors with purchase and production planning with seed-count units, D&PL has a planting
rate calculator available on its web site. Also available on the web site is a seed-count conversion calculator that converts
50-pound bags to 250,000-seed bags based on seed-count per pound.
Seed-count packaging is another part of THE COTTON REVOLUTION(tm), a total value package offered by D&PL, which
includes world-class genetics, leading transgenic technology, worldwide research and breeding, and expert technical and
sales service. DBJ
