PDF (4 MB) - Michigan Sugar Company

Quality Matters
Beet Harvest and Storage
by Dr. Keith Jaggard, Broom’s Barn Research Centre, Higham, UK
16 Fall 2010 MICHIGAN SUGAR COMPANY
Introduction
This issue of The Newsbeet is focused on options
for harvest and this article aims to describe the
options available to beet growers in England as
a contrast to the choices that can be adopted
successfully in the area around the Great Lakes.
England is a part of such a small island that
the proximity to the sea has a powerful and
moderating influence on the climate, which is
seldom severe. Long-term average values for
air temperatures and precipitation during the
fall and winter at Broom’s Barn Research Centre
are shown in Table 1 in comparison with values
from Grand Rapids in Michigan. December,
January and February are clearly much warmer
in England, where precipitation is less. This has
a huge impact on the harvest and storage
procedures that are possible in England.
British Sugar, unlike most European beet processors,
operates a long beet slice campaign;
from mid-September until late February or
March. Until a decade ago, beet harvest finished
around Christmas, so that beets could be stored
in insulated piles to supply the factory throughout
January and February. Beet storage in
Europe is the growers’ responsibility and beet
is kept on the farm from harvest until it is
delivered to the factory for almost immediate
processing; therefore, losses in storage are losses
of farm income. Beet in well-managed, insulated
stores loses about 0.18% of its value per day,
so 100 days’ storage is costly.
Contracts and Beet Price
European beet contracts are tonnage based,
not acreage based as most are in the US. Beets
that are surplus to contract are accepted by the
processor, but usually at a lower price. Growers
satisfy their contract requirements first and then
they may be left with a low-value surplus to
deliver towards the end of the campaign. Thus,
in many years, if they use a risky practice (such
as waiting until February before harvesting
part of the crop), there is not a huge amount
of money at stake.