Wet milling characteristics of export commodity corn originating from different international geographical locations

Background and objectives: Soft endosperm corn has better wet milling characteristics but is susceptible to breakage and fracture during transport. The objective of this study is to compare the millability of commodity corn with different endosperm hardness originating from different parts of the world and its economic impact on importers of corn for wet milling. Findings: US commodity corn generally has a soft endosperm hardness compared to corn from South America as the observed broken corn and foreign material was 0.4–3.4% and higher than other commodity corn exported to the same country. US corn exported to different international markets showed 4–5% higher starch yield compared to South American corn exported to the same market. This translates to an additional revenue of 6.5–9 million USD/year for a 2540 MT/day wet mill plant. [Correction added on 13 April 2021, after first online publication: The value of yield corrected from 100 to 2540.]. Conclusions: The US commodity corn, despite higher breakage, has superior millability and gives higher starch yields compared to corn from other geographies resulting in improved profitability of corn wet milling plants. Significance and novelty: Commodity corn has varying endosperm hardness depending on geography of origin which impacts wet mill starch yield. Corn physical properties were used as an indicator for determining endosperm hardness.