Although it seems the 2016 sugarbeet campaign and its associated issues will never end, there is hope. The latest concern has been whether the Western Sugar Cooperative growers will receive full payment for their crop.
“The growers are very understanding,” Kendall Busch, president of the Nebraska Non-Stock Beet Growers Association said. “The March payment will be delayed but the growers have received their November and January payments. It’s better to delay a payment than have to pay back.”
Busch said the 2016 crop has been outstanding with high sugar content. A major problem has been maintaining quality of the piled beets. Unseasonably warm weather hampered harvest, with deliveries limited to early morning hours on several occasions. Once piled, the issue has been retaining quality, again a difficult challenge for piled beets in continued spells of unseasonably warm weather. Ventilation tubes, as well as insulation with large square straw bales, have protected the majority of piles, but as the warm weather continues, it becomes more difficult to protect the beets.
According to Busch, the extent of the payment delay depends in part on the amount of spoilage and loss due to the weather.
Adding to the challenge has been the renovations to the processing plants at Fort Morgan, Colo.,, and Scottsbluff. Unforeseen delays mean more beets are still piled, adding to the pile loss.
Owen Palm, owner of 21st Century Equipment, said that it’s unfortunate Western Sugar Cooperative has had to face this kind of challenge.
“The cooperative is financially very strong,” he said. “The weather has been the biggest thing. There’s nothing you can do about spoiled beets."