Another excellent year for beet growers

The sugar content and quality is above expectations and the beet harvest is about 80 percent done in the Lovell area, according to Randall Jobman, Senior Agriculturalist for Western Sugar. Jobman said farmers have been feeding a steady supply to the processing plant since the campaign began in early September but have only recently increased their harvest. He said the warm temperatures experienced early in the campaign created some concerns that the beets could rot if left in large piles, but with cooler temperatures in the forecast, those concerns have been put to rest.[caption id="attachment_10485" align="alignright" width="285"] Local beet farmers could be seen harvesting their fields near Lovell this past week.
Patti Carpenter photo[/caption]Lovell plant manager Shannon Ellis said that in spite of the unseasonably warm weather experienced in the early weeks of fall, the campaign is running “exceptionally well.”Ellis said though farmers held back on the early harvest, the plant is still running at “full tilt” and on schedule, explaining that it was the accumulation in the piles that was delayed, not the processing.Ellis said the Lovell factory has been very cautious about accepting beets when it’s hot because the beets tend to go bad quickly and “bad beets do not make good sugar.”Both Jobman and Ellis said it was too early to report on the yield but said they expected it to be at least average or above average.“One of the good things out of all of this is that the beets in the ground are still growing, so by not pulling them out of the ground we’ll be getting a lot more out of it,” said Ellis.Ellis said the sugar content was at around 17.5 percent, which Jobman said was normal for the Lovell area which he said normally sees about 17 – 18 percent sugar content in locally grown beets.“We actually have targets based on a five year average that we’re using and we’re meeting those targets with no problem,” said Ellis.Ellis reported on the harvest and operations at the Lovell plant during an Oct. 16 Lovell Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon held at the Brandin’ Iron Restaurant in Lovell.He noted that a new building has been constructed on the plant property that is being used to remove impurities created as part of the processing. He said the system is environmentally friendly. He said it will help prevent the potential for a breach in the ponds that could potentially damage the nearby river. He said the plant also has a new diffuser and it is working very well.Ellis said the plant is, for the most part, staffed up for the tasks at hand but continues to hire and train for future tasks, especially tasks connected with the new building. He expects the need for more hands to increase in December. He said, though off to a slow start, he still expects the campaign to end on schedule in mid-February.“With these fresh beets that are being pulled right now we’re running great,” said Ellis.

By Patti Carpenter