A “Feed Central Hay Inspector”, is a person that visits farms in person to conduct a visual analysis of Fodder. A Feed Central hay inspector is trained by Feed Central to conduct a visual analysis and sample collection for any type of Fodder. This could be straw, hay, haylage, or silage.
A visual inspection provides information about various attributes of the fodder being inspected. This information is used to provide a summary of the hay, straw, silage, etc to support the consumer in making the correct choice for the animals being fed. A Visual inspection should cover the following areas: Colour, maturity, stem thickness, stem length, moisture range, leaf retention or texture, weeds, foreign material, black spot or mould presence, aroma, and material consistency.
Inspectors will carry out the following tasks on hay bales:
- Take moisture readings from inside at least 10% bales to ensure moisture content is appropriate and safe to store and travel.
- Take core and grab samples from various bales to be sent to Feed Central head office laboratory.
- Complete a questionnaire (or via app) about all aspects of the visual quality.
- Check and confirm bale weights, storage, baling dates, and rodent status.
Once inspected, all samples are sent back to our laboratory for a review of visual grade and a NIR feed testing analysis. All inspection and testing data is uploaded to the Feed Central Quality Certificate and is able to be viewed on the Feed Central Website.
