What unit is most commonly used to express seed treatment rates, and what is its pounds equivalent?

• A. Ounces per hundredweight; 1 cwt equals 100 pounds.
• B. Pounds per hundredweight; 1 cwt equals 50 pounds.
• C. Grams per kilogram; 1 kg equals 2.2046 pounds.
• D. Percent by weight; 1%.

Answer: (A)

The concept being tested is how seed treatment rates are most commonly expressed. In practice, you’ll see the amount of product written as ounces per hundredweight of seed. This works well because treatment rates are small and need to be tied directly to a standard amount of seed being treated. The hundredweight (cwt) is defined as 100 pounds, so the pounds equivalent is simply 100 pounds per hundredweight. Put another way, 1 ounce per cwt corresponds to a very small fraction of a pound per 100 pounds of seed (1 oz = 1/16 lb, so 1 oz per 100 lb = 0.0625 lb per 100 lb). Other units—pounds per hundredweight, grams per kilogram, or percent by weight—aren’t the standard way seed treatment rates are expressed in typical labeling.