• Wednesday, April 17 | 7:30 a.m.

    A View on the Future of Flour Milling in the 21st Century: Navigating the Intersection of AI, Plant Genetics, Public Health, Sustainability, and Shifting Consumer Demands

    Peter Levangie
    President & CEO, Bay State Milling

    We are living in a time of rapid and profound change – the accelerating integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI), advancements in plant genetics, climate change & sustainability imperatives,  heightened public health awareness, and evolving consumer preferences.   The presentation will explore how these external forces might impact the future of flour milling and how flour millers might want to think navigating these potentially revolutionary changes.

    The forces at play:

    1. AI Revolutionizing Flour Milling:

    Artificial Intelligence is set to revolutionize the world and the flour milling industry will not be immune. AI-driven technologies are enhancing precision and efficiency across manufacturing processes. Real-time data analysis and predictive algorithms optimize grain selection, milling techniques, and quality control, ensuring consistent flour quality while reducing waste. As AI continues to evolve, it will become an indispensable tool for millers seeking to maintain competitiveness.

    1. Plant Genetics and Flour Diversity:

    Plant genetics play a pivotal role in the future of flour milling. Ongoing research is yielding wheat varieties tailored to specific milling and nutritional requirements. This innovation extends beyond yield improvements, focusing on disease resistance, nutritional content, and functional attributes. Flour millers are leveraging these advances to meet diverse consumer demands, from artisanal specialty flours to allergen-free and nutritionally enhanced options.

    1. Public Health and Nutritional Awareness:

    Public health considerations are increasingly influencing the food and agricultural system. As nutrition and human science advance while health care costs continue to escalate, incentives for investing in preventive health through our diets will grow.  This is both opportunity and risk for flour millers.

    1. Climate Change and the Growing Sustainability Imperative:

    Climate change and its costs will continue to motivate stakeholders to elevate sustainability for governments, companies, NGOs, and citizens. Reducing environmental impacts, minimizing waste, and addressing water and energy consumption are key priorities.  Companies are already taking active measures today against these priorities.  What might the future look like?

    1. Navigating Shifting Consumer Preferences:

    With the COVID years of consumer choice constrained by supply issues behind us, the diversification of consumer preferences within food is reemerging.  Consumers are wanting more from their food experiences – more taste, more wellness, more convenience, and more personalization.  In the US, flour-based foods still maintain a dominant role in most American dets.  How can milling companies contribute to preventing a loss of of share of stomach?

    As seen through these large scale trends, the future of flour milling looks more dynamic than ever.  The presentation will conclude with some recommendations on how flour millers might prepare for and perhaps even thrive in this evolving environment, delivering flours that meet the demands of a changing world while upholding quality, health, safety, and sustainability standards.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1-1:30 p.m.

    Hiring Veterans: A Smart Choice in Staffing Your Workforce

    Mark Farmer, Grain Craft

    Staffing our current workforce continues to be a challenge for many employers. Whether it is someone who has already served in our military forces and transitioned out or someone who may be currently serving in a reserve component once a month, focusing on hiring military veterans can be a smart choice in a company’s overall recruiting strategy. This session will focus on the value proposition that military veterans can bring and explore ways organizations can intentionally hire more military veterans each year to fill roles within our industry.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1:35-2:05 p.m.

    Employee Management

    Jennifer Harnish, PHM Brands

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 2:10-2:40 p.m.

    Mental Health Safety in the Workplace

    Susan VanKrevelen, Ardent Mills

    Mental Health challenges present as much a threat to safety in our workplaces as any physical risk. The latest statistics show 1 in every 5 workers are suffering. In this presentation, we will discuss how to safely identify & proactively respond to basic signs & symptoms, along with ways to implement a training program at your facility.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1-1:30 p.m.

    The Anatomy of a Cyber Attack

    Brandon Bohle, Interstates

    Experience the harrowing journey of a grain mill targeted by ransomware. Understand the multiple phases of the attack from initial exploitation to system compromise, operations disruption, and the arduous recovery process. Learn the critical steps taken to restore operations, enhance security, and safeguard the grain supply chain. Gain insights into the challenges faced by the industry and the importance of proactive cybersecurity measures to mitigate risks and protect grain milling operations.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1:35-2:05 p.m.

    Staying Compliant with NFPA 70B and 70E

    Karl Von Knobelsdorff, Knobelsdorff Electric

    This session will discuss both the benefits of a proper Electrical Maintenance Program (EMP) as well as the benefits of avoiding unexpected downtime due to failing electrical apparatuses. An ArcFlash study is not valid without the (newly required) maintenance/testing components to validate catastrophic energy pass through of protective devices. This industry NEEDS to hear this message, not only because it’s now an NFPA requirement, but because many are unaware of its impact on proper functionality of circuit protective devices.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 2:10-2:40 p.m.

    Safety Leadership on Principles of Human Performance

    Lacey Young, General Mills

    Learn the approach of safety differently through the five principles of human performance.  This includes the “no name, blame, shame, retrain” philosophy with a focus on how we design our systems, processes, and controls differently to plan for human error.  As humans, we inherently will make mistakes, and the manufacturing industry tends to focus on how to blame the employee when something goes wrong.  Learning to focus on safety differently means we plan for human error to occur and ensure when failure happens, there are guardrails in place to prevent an employee from injury.  This presentation also includes real-life milling examples on applying these concepts at our locations and the positive outcomes that follow.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1-1:30 p.m.

    Microbial Transfer & Cross-Contamination in Milling Facilities

    Scott Osborne, Mennel Milling Company; Andreia Bianchini-Huebner, University of Nebraska

    Microbial contaminants entering the mill with incoming wheat kernels and the accumulation of grain or flour residues within milling equipment present significant risks for cross-contamination during processing. This potential transfer of microorganisms from equipment to food raises serious food safety concerns, often associated with pathogen cross-contamination in food processing environments, a leading cause behind food recalls. When assessing natural levels of microbial contamination, equipment dedicated to cleaning and tempering operations harbors elevated microbial loads, serving as reservoirs for mesophilic bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, and molds. Moreover, coliform counts significantly increase from wheat kernels to milled fractions, especially in flour handling and storage equipment. To further understand these microbial interactions in the mill, wheat contaminated with non-pathogenic E. coli (~4.5 log CFU/g) was processed. Results of this trial showed higher microbial transfer in non-flour milling fractions (~3.6 log CFU/g). However, significant contamination levels were also observed in straight-grade flour (~2.6 log CFU/g). Additionally, this contamination was reflected on the milling equipment surfaces, showing quantifiable microbial counts (up to 2.3 log CFU/10 cm2). Following the contaminated batch, non-inoculated wheat was sent through the mill as a simulation of wheat that had been treated via pathogen mitigation technologies. The mill ran for a period of time equivalent to two times its capacity, while samples were collected. Additionally, simple cleaning steps were implemented. These steps effectively reduced microbial contamination in flour fractions and equipment (<1 log CFU/g and <1 log CFU/10 cm2) to baseline levels. These data demonstrate that cross-contamination in wheat milling processing can easily occur, transferring microbial contamination from wheat kernels to equipment and fractions and vice versa. Importantly, these same contaminants are also able to be flushed through the system using grains that are free of microbial contamination. These results imply that pathogen mitigation technologies implemented during the tempering step can be an effective tool in producing flour that has significantly reduced microbial contamination, given a proper flush of the mill is carried out initially, without the concern that it will be re-contaminated during the milling process.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1:35-2:05 p.m.

    FDA Inspections – What’s Key?

    Glenn Bass, FDA

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 2:10-2:40 p.m.

    Level-Up Your Foggings and Fumigations

    Eric Meyers, ADM

    Have you ever wondered why you see insect trails within days of a fogging? Or a quick rebound in pheromone counts and sifter tailings? Would substantial insect fallout be evidence of a successful treatment or an indicator of something else going on? Stored product insects are a unique group that can be challenging to manage effectively and with underperforming sanitation and pest control, they can cause a number of disruptions. Extensive fogging’s and fumigations are a common practice however they should be considered a part of an overall strategy and not routine practice. To achieve the best results, site preparation is key, with cleaning and exposure being the two driving factors. Subsequently, a post treatment inspection can offer great learning opportunities on how to improve MSS, GMP, pest control programs and preparation efforts treatment to treatment.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1-1:30 p.m.

    From Chaos to Clarity: The Impact of Flow Sheet Management

    Reed Cody, Bay State Milling

    If flowsheets are the roadmaps of the mill, navigating a flour mill without a flowsheet is like trying to drive from New York to San Francisco without a map. It can be done but it’s going to be a very frustrating journey, especially for someone who has never made the trek. Managing our flowsheets is one of the most critical things we can do as millers to set ourselves up for success. Breaking down what can be a complicated process with lots of ins and outs into something that’s tangible and navigable in times when quick decisions are necessary can be the difference between uptime and downtime. This session emphasizes the dynamic nature of a mill flow and how managing the flowsheet can make or break our process, stressing the importance of regular updates and adaptability to evolving milling technologies and grain varieties as our operating environment changes. It explores how accurate flowsheets help us troubleshoot, make good decisions, and adapt to changing grain regardless of experience level.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 1:35-2:05 p.m.

    The Business Case for Sustainability in the Milling Industry

    Jay O’Nien, Buhler

    This presentation & accompanying white paper provides an overview of the key sustainability requirements from various stakeholders, including governments, companies, and consumers. It considers how environmental sustainability using both greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting and life cycle assessments can be quantified, and the key steps in reducing the environmental footprint of the milling process and in the cereals and grains value chain. By quantifying environmental impacts, companies can create a data-based discussion, enabling them to create a competitive advantage and build a favorable business case for sustainable products. When sustainability is profitable, it will create impact at scale.

  • Wednesday, April 17 | 2:10-2:40 p.m.

    Amber Wave: Going Beyond the Grain

    Jesse Snyder & Jeremy Gray, Amber Wave

    At Amber Wave, we are leading the way in wheat protein and advanced biofuel production. With our new state-of-the-art facility completed, we are producing industry-premium vital wheat gluten, wheat-based ethanol, and other important co-products. Our facility, located in Phillipsburg, Kansas, utilizes world-class automation, superior equipment, and an exceptionally trained workforce along with help from our partners in milling, wheat protein extraction, and renewable biofuels. As we approach six months of operation, learn how we are going beyond the grain as we outline the planning, construction, troubleshooting, and successes of our two-year project.

  • Thursday, April 18 | 1-2 p.m.

    Capturing the Science in the “Art” of Milling

    Alex Young, General Mills

    As employers, we are faced with hiring and retaining our workforce and have the added challenge of teaching the art of milling at the pace we need. With turnover and “how our workforce learns” drastically different than even five years ago we have to implement processes to not loose efficiencies. I will highlight a Foundational System toolkit that we use which builds system knowledge through repetitive action that prioritizes how the health of our mills are maintained to produce high-quality and safe flour. We establish leading indicators to deliver lagging results and drive planned vs reactive actions, which is critical to the longevity of our operations. The three foundational systems are the trilogy of how we “do work”.

  • Thursday, April 18 | 2:10-3:10 p.m.

    Miller Panel

    Moderator: Sunil Maheshwari, Siemer Milling Company