It's like vacuuming, but different. Shortly after the turbo blowers have been switched on and created enough vacuum, the corn is sucked out of the vessel. Although this is not the only way to empty a ship of cargo, Vigan in Belgium is devoted to pneumatic ship unloading of bulky materials. Feed Tech asked commercial director Alain de Visscher to explain why.

South Korea is one of the countries that are at the forefront of the latest technologies in feed manufacturing. In 2002 the Belgian automation company Adifo received an automation order from the Korean group JE IL Feed to update their complete administrative system.

South Korean agro-industry conglomerate Cheil Jedang Corp, already set to invest in a second feedmill producing feed for ruminants and poultry in Turkey in 2007, plans to increase production capacity in China and develop new businesses in Southeast Asia, according to Dr Barry Choi, director of the company's feed research institute.

Feed raw materials sometimes have a pleasant smell, such as by-products from the fruit juice industry. But products can also have a foul odour, especially when oils and fats are involved or products are treated by pressure and temperature. To avoid complaints of residents around a feedmill these smells need to be neutralised.

When opportunity came knocking, Triumph Engineering founder, president and managing director Boonchai Kositkhun was among the first to realize it. This was back in 1985 when he received an unsolicited order from Thailand’s THH Group for 15 sets of tapioca pelleting machines!

An animal health company that is also active in nutritional feed additives is a somewhat unexpected combination. But within Intervet this has been the case for many years. A specific feed additive dedicated group will be market ready at the beginning of next year.

The European feed industry fights for fairer prices for farmers and for global feed safety standards. Meanwhile the EU accession countries promise medium-term expansion possibilities.

Martin Tielen was elected the new president of the European compound feed industry organisation Fefac at their congress in Venice in mid June. Confidence, cooperation and communication are the key words that will emphasise his term for the coming three years.

Prices of raw materials fluctuate under the influence of factual, speculative or more indefinable reasons. Traders want to eliminate this price risk as much as possible, because they buy or sell the feedstuffs often a long time before the actual harvest has taken place. One way to minimise these risks is to trade on the so-called futures market.

Çamli Feeds is the animal feed division of Yasar Holding, one of the largest food companies in Turkey. Investments in innovation seem to be their success factor in agriculture.