Sugar beet

Sugar beet is an important source of sugar, although about 70 % of the world’s sugar is produced from sugar cane and only 30 % from sugar beet. In temperate climates, however, sugar beet achieves high yields and is of great economic importance – at least until the EU sugar market reform of 2006, after which sugar beet production in the EU was increasingly exposed to fluctuations in world market prices. In recent years (with the exception of 2012 and 2023), sugar beet has become more of a rotation crop and usually ranks only third in gross margin on our farm.

The “queen of field crops” has been grown on our farm since about 1920, and a lot has changed since then. Today both the harvest and the transport of the beet are organised jointly with other farms. The production technique is demanding, especially sowing: an even emergence with a target of about 90,000 plants per hectare requires a fine and uniform seedbed. Lime is applied before sugar beet to improve the physical properties of the soil. Sowing is done with a precision seed drill. In good years, yields of over 120 t/ha with sugar contents of up to 18 % are possible.