The Lamar register., 1901-04-24
A RECORD BREAKER
Remarkable Growth Of the Beet
Sugar Industry Taken From
Census Report.

Sugar Industry Taken From
Census Report.
Beet sugar was not reported sepa-
rately in the census of 1890, as only
2 factories were in operation. These
factories were both located in Cali
fornia, and are still operated upon a
largely increased scale. One of
these factories few years ago man
ufactured nearly 10000 tons of sugar
in a single season.
The quantity of beet sugar manu-
featured in 1889 was not separately
tabulated in the report of the Elev-
enth Census. The quantity report
ed by the factories to the California
state board of agriculture was .
457 tons of 1000 pounds, large
part of which was raw sugar. The
total value of the product probably
did not exceed S275,000. The aver
age price paid for sugar beets was
approximately So per ton. The total
output of beet sugar in 1889 was less
than per cent of the total cane and
beet sugar of domestic manufac
ture.
In 1897 the number of factories
had increased to 8, with total of
As, ,246 short tons of sugar manufac
tured, or approxim ately IL per cent
OF the total cane and beet sugar Of
domestic manufacture.
In 1899, as shown by the census
statistics in this report, the number
of factories operated was 30, with an
output of 79,99S short tons of sugar
excluding l,73l short tons of raw
sugar melted in 1900, equivalent TO
the quantity melted IN 1899 from
the product of 1898. The total
quantity OF cane and beet sugar of
domestic manufacture, as reported
in Willett Il Gray's Circular in 1899
was 800, ,531 short tons, showing that
the production of beet sugar was
then approximately 35 per cent of
the total sugar produced in the
country from sugar cane and beets.
The cane crop of 1899 was fully
100000 tons below the average, but
the beet crop was not over 80 per
cent of what would reasonably be
expected from the acreage seeded,
the comparison is just one.
The American beet sugar factories
now have nominal daily capacity OF
22,3lO short tons of beets, and, when
fully supplied with the raw material,
should easily manufacture 24O, 900
short tons of sugar per annum.
From this brief historical sketch
it is apparent that the period for
which the statistics were gathered by
the Census Office was one of the
greatest activity in our beet sugar
industry. This fact has largely in
fuenced the writer in devoting to
the details of advancement more
space than strictly statistical re-
port wovld require.
1t should be stated that this per-
iod of great activity began in 1896,
since when 3o factories have been
built, including 6 new ones for the
crop of 1900 OF these 35 factories
2 have failed. One, located at Me
nomonee Falls, Wis, was not com
pleted in time for the crop, and tests
of machinery showed it to be practi-
cally failure This factory has
never been operated and is not in
cluded in the statistics IN this report
The second failure was that of the
factory at Rome, N. Y. This factory
was operated during three seasons,
but was of small capacity aud capi-
tai, and was not prepared to meet
the sharp competition of other fac
tories in the purchase of beets.
Experience has demonstrated that
the greatest problems in the Ameri-
can beet sugar industry are to be
found in the field rather than in the
factory. 1t should not be assumed
from this statement that suitable