Moisture of Cereal Grains
Water content of grain
The moisture of cereal grains is an important economic quality criterion for the assessment of the storing properties of grain and the for fixing the prices at loading places for grain. As a biological good the grain contains absorbed water as well in the corn as at the surface. The content of moisture is determined in different ways depending on the method used. The accurate content of water of the various kinds of grain can be only determined according to a standardized determination procedure, the so called realization procedure. Based on that procedure the content of moisture of grain is defined as the loss of mass which the product is subject to under specified conditions.
The measuring instruments in practical use implement other measuring principles than that of direct drying – because of the long time of the drying process. Therefore, all grain moisture measuring instruments on the market and subject to mandatory verification have to be measured each year according to the realization procedure.

Verification of grain moisture measuring instruments
Measuring instruments for the determination of grain moisture are subject to mandatory verification in Austria. Acceptable for verification are only instruments type approved by BEV or EEC approved in the frame of the agreement of the European Economic Area (EEA agreement). Verification of grain moisture measuring instruments is carried out by the legal metrology authority. The interval of subsequent verification is one year.

The hectolitre mass of cereals
The hectolitre mass of cereals is a further assessment criterion. It is determined by weighing a capacity measure filled in a specified way. Reference value is the value determined by the 20 I national standard instrument of the BEV.
In practice instruments for the determination of ¼ l and 1 l grain are used. They are traceable by tables to the measurement results of the 20 I national standard instrument.
Verification of the hectolitre mass standard
Hectolitre mass standards are subject to mandatory verification in Austria. Acceptable for verification are only instruments type approved by BEV or EEC approved in the frame of the agreement of the European Economic Area (EEA agreement). The verification of hectolitre mass standards is carried out by accredited verification bodies in Austria. The interval for subsequent verification is 2 years.
Content of protein
The content of protein is determined according to the procedure of Kjedahl (reference procedure). All instruments in service operating according to a physical measurement principle are measured by this reference procedure.