If memory serves, one of Forester's Hornblower books had the then young officer losing a prize ship because a below the waterline shot hole allowed sea water to get at the rice, whoich then expanded as it absorbed the water, and split the hold and the ship wide open. The tricky bit which escaped him was that due to the rice absorbing the water no free water was found whenever they measured the bilges for loose or free water.

If this was common enough to be included in the book then I can only assume that it was a problem merchant men faced while hauling cargos of this sort.

Dave