How do you manage silo stock and warehouse inventory as a dairy trader?

A dairy trader’s stock is rarely in one place. Bagged powders sit in third-party warehouses, butter in a cold store, liquid products or bulk powder in silos, product bought but not yet collected at the producer, and loads on the road. Each location has its own units, its own rules and its own way of reporting. Managing stock means knowing at any moment what you have, where it is, what condition it is in and what is already sold.

Packed stock versus silo stock

Packed stock (bags, big bags, pallets, cartons) is counted per lot. Each lot has a production date, a best-before date and analysis results. You can trace exactly which lot went to which customer.

Silo stock is continuous. Loads with different weights and qualities go into the same silo, and the content becomes a mix. Quantities are measured by weight or level, the dry matter content of liquid products changes per intake, and there are small losses or gains when the silo is emptied. See How does dry matter calculation work in dairy trading?

Points of attention

• Lots and traceability. For recalls and customer audits you need to know which lots went where. Keep certificates of analysis with each lot.
• Shelf life. Ship the lots that expire first, and check customer requirements on maximum product age at delivery.
• Quality holds. Stock that is physically present but blocked, for example awaiting release or a lab result, is not available to sell.
• Physical versus economic stock. Product you have sold but the customer has not yet collected is still in the warehouse but no longer yours to sell. Product you have bought but not yet received is yours but not yet in the warehouse.
• Third-party warehouses. Reconcile your records with the stock statements from the warehouse at least monthly.
• Blends. If you mix products in a silo or have them blended, the cost price and the losses need to be calculated for the resulting product.

Reconciling stock

Differences between your records and the physical stock are normal. What matters is finding them early. Compare warehouse statements, silo measurements and your own records regularly, and trace each difference to a delivery, a booking error or a real loss. A difference that is investigated after a week is usually easy to explain; after three months it rarely is.

Stock in Moo Software

Moo Software gives real-time insight into stock movements and balances, whether the stock is at an external location, in your own warehouse or in bulk and silo storage. Lots and batches are tracked, and blends with multiple ingredients are recorded including cost calculation and processing of blend losses. When an order is entered, stock is adjusted economically, so sold stock is no longer shown as available. With the optional weighbridge link, weights are recorded automatically, and warehouse staff can work in Moo with a separate login with limited access. Certificates and other documents can be attached to lots. More in Planification et Contrôle Logistiques.

Stock is one of the four parts of your position, next to purchase contracts, sales contracts and goods in transit. See How do you track your position in dairy ingredient trading? et How do dairy traders manage contracts, call-offs and deliveries?

See it with your own stock

Want to see how Moo keeps track of stock across silos and warehouses? Réserver une démo or Contactez-nous.