By MICHELE F. MIHALJEVICH
Indiana Correspondent

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The results of several years’ worth of research on dry distillers’ grains with solubles (DDGS) will be released and discussed at an upcoming Purdue University event – the Integrated Corn Ethanol Co-product Conference is Nov. 18 at the Beck Agricultural Center.

A “webinar” online broadcast will also be available.

For the past few years, Purdue researchers have been studying DDGS, the grain product left over after ethanol is produced from corn, said Scott Radcliffe, associate professor in animal sciences at Purdue. Production inconsistencies at different ethanol plants and even at the same plants have caused inconsistencies in DDGS, he said.

“There has been a variability in the product in the nutrient composition,” he said. “We’ve tried to go into the plants and look at the production end to see how to better control the production practices.”

Various Purdue studies have looked at the digestibility of the nutrients on swine, poultry, beef and dairy, and on growth issues, he said. Others have focused on storage and handling. The conference is geared toward veterinarians, consulting nutritionists, larger producers and packers, Radcliffe said.

“We hope they leave with a little better understanding of the process (of getting DDGS from ethanol production),” he said. “We hope they can get an understanding of the back end of the process, and a better idea how all this affects animal diets.”

Ethanol plant personnel are also welcome at the conference, said Chad Martin, Purdue renewable energy extension specialist.
“The conference will be beneficial for several folks along the entire industry supply chain,” he said. “Ethanol plants are taking in this information in order to improve their competitive advantage.
“Purdue brings them unbiased research on the latest on DDGS. We hope to answer a lot of questions.”

DDGS inconsistencies may be attributed to several facets of a plant’s operation, including how much liquid condensed solubles are used and how long the fermentation process lasts, said Richard Stroshine, a professor of agricultural and biological engineering at Purdue. Researchers took samples from a plant using the normal amount of condensed solubles, half as many and none, he said.
“We wanted to look at what advantages and disadvantages there were,” Stroshine said. “We want to give plants an option in terms of marketing strategy for DDGS. This will help them explore different options and see if any can be of benefit to them.”

The current economy makes this information even more important to plant owners, Radcliffe said.

“Ethanol is a dynamic industry,” he said. “When they’re making money on ethanol, there’s really less concern about DDGS as a byproduct. But as gas prices go down and costs go up, there’s not as much money being made. There’s an increased awareness at a lot of ethanol plants that consistent production makes a more consistent product and more money.”

In addition to Stroshine and his colleague Klein Ileleji presenting their research on DDGS storage and handling, other conference topics include the economic value of DDGS as a feed ingredient, the economic impact of ethanol co-products on manure and nutrients and a panel discussion on the future of ethanol plants and DDGS.
The conference, from 8:15 a.m.-4:40 p.m., is free to those attending at the Beck Agricultural Center in West Lafayette on U.S. Highway 52. Organizers ask that potential participants pre-register at www.conf.purdue.edu/corn or contact Radcliffe at 765-496-7718.