News Sugar beets
Sweet beets do not compensate for lower yields
At the beginning of October, all sugar factories in Germany started their 2018/2019 campaign. As expected, revenues this year are significantly lower. However, the differences per state and region are large. The high sugar percentages cannot compensate for the carrot yield.
In the state of Lower Saxony, an average of 50 tons is harvested per hectare. However, the regional differences are large, reports country people organization. Almost 108.000 hectares of sugar beet grows in the state. Much more than the total Dutch acreage. There are 4 factories of Nordzucker to process beet. Last year it was 8,5 million tons, which will certainly not be achieved this year.
High sugar levels
Due to the sunny weather, the sugar percentages are at a very high level (19%). This brings the average sugar yield to 12 tons per hectare, which is 2 tons less than last year. Arable farmers have little hope that the beet price will compensate for the lower yield, due to the situation on the world market.
In the first week of October, producer Pfeifer & Langen also opened its factories in Appeldorn, Jülich and Euskirchen. started† The harvesting is going better than expected, because it was previously thought that the considerably smaller beets would cause problems during harvesting and shipping. The factories do have difficulties with the dead leaves. There are also local problems with insect damage; this plays a role in Euskirchen in particular. With an average sugar content of 19%, the sweetest beets are supplied here. At the other 2 factories this is on average 18%.
Significant area expansion
The first beets are also being harvested and processed in the federal state of Bavaria. The South German beet growers' organization thinks the carrot yield is 15% to 20% lower than last year. Locally, it has rained more south of the Danube, resulting in average yields here. The acreage in the state has increased by 15% this year, to 65.000 hectares. This somewhat offsets the yield.
The association expects the acreage to decrease by 6% next year. This is due to the sugar price, which has an impact on the payout price. A sugar price of €350 per tonne does not cover costs for the factory and the grower; a minimum of €450 per tonne is required for this. With a sugar content of 20%, the beets in southern Germany are even sweeter. This is due to the fact that they have remained very small. The plant numbers are the same as last year and can be called good.
Niels van der Boom
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.