Technical Specifications for

SOYBEANS
Specification reference: Dry Soybean grains
Version: V13.0
Date of issue: 17, June, 2013
Developed: Van Hoan NGUYEN, OSPFQ-WFP
Reviewed: Shane PRIGGE, OSPFQ-WFP
Approved: Shane PRIGGE, OSPFQ-WFP

1. SCOPE
This specification applies to dry Soybean grains of the plant Glycine max, purchased by
WFP.

2. DEFINITION
Yellow soybeans are soybeans that have yellow or green seed coats and which in cross
section, are yellow or have a yellow tinge, and may include not more than 10.0 percent of
soybeans of others colors.
Mixed soybeans are soybeans that do not meet the requirements of the class Yellow
Soybeans.
Heat-damaged kernels are soybeans and pieces of soybeans that are materially discolored
and damaged by heat. Soybeans with a light to dark brown cotyledon when cut in cross
section are considered heated.
Damaged kernels are soybeans and pieces of soybeans that are badly ground-damaged, badly
weather-damaged, diseased, frost-damaged, heat-damaged, insect-bored, mold-damaged,
sprout-damaged, purple mottled or stained, immature, shrivelled, stinkbug-stung or otherwise
materially damaged. Stinkbug-stung kernels are considered damaged kernels at the rate of
one-fourth of the actual percentage of the stung kernels.
Frost-damaged soybeans, when cut in cross-section, are soybeans whose cotyledons are
green or greenish-brown with a glassy wax-like appearance are considered frost-damaged.
Seeds that are yellow or very pale green are considered sound, even if they are superficially
affected by weathering.
Insect damaged kernels are characterized by a perforation of the seed coat in conjunction
with a discoloration penetrating into the cotyledon.
Mouldy soybeans are wrinkled and misshapen, and range in colour from medium to dark
brown. Large areas of the affected bean are superficially covered with a grey mould. Mouldy
beans often have a spongy texture and usually give off an unpleasant odour.
Sprouted are soybeans that whose seed coat splits and the primary root emerges from
between the cotyledons.

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Purple mottled or stained are soybeans that are discolored by the growth of a fungus; or by
dirt; or by a dirt-like substance(s) including nontoxic inoculants; or by other nontoxic
substances. If the soybeans are not damaged or discoloured internally, they are considered
sound.
Immature damaged soybeans are characterized by a green exterior appearance in
conjunction with green discolouration penetrating the cotyledon. Examination of the
cotyledons is determined by cutting the soybeans in cross section. For grading purposes,
immature damaged soybeans are considered as part of the “Total Damage” grade
specification.
Shrivelled are soybeans which are underdeveloped, thin and wrinkled over its entire surface.
If the soybean is shrivelled, small and flat, it has no oil value and is considered Damaged.
Foreign material is any material that is not soybean grains or fragments of soybean grains.
Splits include split soybeans, broken seeds that are less than three-quarters of the whole seed,
and cotyledons that are loosely held together by the seed coat.
Soybeans of others colors are soybeans that have green, black, brown, or bicolored seed
coats. Soybeans that have green seed coats will also be green in cross section. Bicolored
soybeans will have seed coats of two colors, one of which is brown or black, and the brown or
black color covers 50 percent of the seed coats. The hilum of a soybean is not considered a
part of the seed coat for this determination.

3. REFERENCE
Standard and specification for soybeans, soybean oil and soybean meal-American Soybean
Association (source: http://www.asaim-europe.org/backup/pdf/standardsfor.pdf)
Codex Standard for certain pulses grains (Codex Stan 171-1989, rev. 1-1995).
Canada Grain Commission: Official grain grading guide- Soybeans
(http://www.grainscanada.gc.ca)

4. PRODUCT SPECIFICATION
4.1 General requirements
 Moisture content: 14.0% max
 Organoleptic: Clean and bright appearance, Natural odour
 Heat-damaged kernels: 0.5% max
 Damaged kernels (total): 3.0% max
 Foreign material: 2.0% max
 Splits: 20.0% max
 Soybeans of other colors: 2.0% max
 Live insects: Nil
 Production year: As per contractual agreement

4.2 Contaminants and Toxins

Soybeans shall not contain contaminants and toxins in amounts which may represent a hazard
to human health. Specific limit of some contaminants and toxins is presented in table 1.

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Table 1: Limit of contaminants and toxins

No Contaminant and toxin Limit

Heavy metal
1 Arsenic (As) 0.10 ppm max.
2 Copper (Cu) 2.0 ppm max.
3 Lead (Pb) 0.10 ppm max.
4 Cadmium (Cd) 0.02 ppm max.
5 Mercury (Hg) 0.01 ppm max.
Pesticide residues
6 Carbamate < 10 ppb
7 Organochlorine < 10 ppb
8 Organophosphorus < 10 ppb
9 Pyrethroid < 10 ppb
Toxic or noxious seeds
10 Crotalaria (Crotalaria spp.) Free
11 Corn cockle (Agrostemma githago L.) Free
12 Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) Free
13 Jimson weed (Datura spp.) Free
Radiation
14 Radiation (Isotopes of strontium, notably Sr-90) 750 Bq/Kg max.
Mycotoxins
15 Aflatoxin (total B1+B2+G1+G2) 20 ppb max.
16 Fumosin 5 ppb max.
17 Zearalenone 100 ppb max.
18 Ochratoxin A 5 ppb max.

5. PACKAGING AND MARKING

As per contractual agreement.

6. STORING
Soybeans must be stored under dry, ventilated and hygienic conditions.

7. SAMPLING REQUIREMENTS
Representative samples can be drawn according to international sampling method standards at
the bagging section or in the warehouse.
For packed units, sampling frequency and reference method are showed in table 2. One
laboratory samples of about 3 kg is required by lot or sub-lot of 500MT maximum.
For the bulk (static and flowing), the sampling must follow the rules described in paragraphs
5.2 of ISO 24333-2009.

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Table 2: Sampling rules

Lot or sub-lot Place of Reference (or

Number of increment
size (MT) sampling equivalent)
3 % of bags and minimum 50 bags
≤100 (e.g. 60 increments for a lot of 100
MT, packed in 50 kg bag)
3 % of bags (e.g. 120 increments for a
101-200
lot of 200 MT, packed in 50 kg bag)
Warehouse or
3 % of bags (e.g. 180 increments for a during GAFTA 124-2
201-300 production
lot of 300 MT, packed in 50 kg bag)
3 % of bags (e.g. 240 increments for a
301-400
lot of 400 MT, packed in 50 kg bag)
3 % of bags (e.g. 300 increments for a
401-500
lot of 500 MT, packed in 50 kg bag)

7. ANALYTICAL REQUIREMENTS
The principal analyses/tests in table 3 must be performed in order to check if the quality of the
Soybeans meets above requirements. Additional analyses shall be defined in case of further
quality assessment.

Table 3: List of compulsory analyses/tests and reference method

No Analyses/tests Limit Reference method

(or equivalent)

1 Moisture content 14.0% max ISO 665:2000

2 Organoleptic Clean and bright appearance, Organoleptic

Natural odour
3 Heat-damaged kernels 0.5% max Visual
4 Damaged kernels (total) 3.0% max Visual
5 Foreign material 2.0% max Visual
6 Splits 20.0% max Visual
7 Soybeans of other colors 2.0% max Visual
8 Live insects Nil Visual

9 GMO (only if required) Negative (<0.9% of GMO

material as per EU regulation
1830/2003)

A guide for grading is presented in annex 1.

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 Annex 1: Guide for grading of soybean grain
The grading shall be performed as follow:
- Draw and weight a test portion (about 200g)
- Separate the test portion into component groups
- Weigh materials of the component groups
- Express the amount of material groups in percentage (guide in table 4)

Table 4: Record sheet for grading of soybean grain

Mass of the test portion (grams)-
M ….. gr

Component Mass of component Result calculation

(grams) (expressed in % by mass of
the test portion)
Heat-damaged kernels a = a x 100 / M
Frost-damaged soybean

Insect damaged kernels soybeans

Mouldy soybeans
Sprouted kernels
Purple mottled or stained
soybeans
Immature kernels
Shrivelled kernels b
Damaged kernels (total) = (a + b) x 100 /M
Foreign material c = c x 100 / M
Splits d = d x 100 / M
Soybeans of others colors e = e x 100 / M

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