The Ordway new era., 1909-05-28
THE BEET SUGAR INDUSTRY

report on the bcct-sugar industry in
the United States. This report con-
tains an interesting summary OF facts
and figures relating to this industry.
In 1896 there were q bcet-sugar fac
tories in operation and one building,
having altogether a capacity for slic-
Ing 1000 tons OF beets daily. In 1908
there were O. factories, with a total
capacity OF $4,000 tons OF beets daily
more than twelve-fold increase.
From 1893 to 1906 our production OF
beet sugar grew from $4,000 tons to
$4,000, an increase OF more than
thirteen fold In eight years.
In 1895 Al 600 acres OF beets were
harvested; in 1906 $4,000 acres, or
more than nine times as great an area.
The price OF beets, like prices OF
other farm crops, has risen steadily.
In 1896 the factories paid $40 per
ton; now they have to pay S5.35.
In 1898 the farmers had 364 200
tons OF bects to sell to the factories,
for which they received l,564 900.
In 1906, just eight years later, they
had 4, 236, 900 tons OF beets to sell, and
received for them s2l ,G0l ,OOO-a twelve
fold increase in bects and fourteen
fold increase in money returns.
The total amount paid out by fac
tories for beets during the past twelve
years amounts to Sl2l 100000.
The total capital invested in beet
sugar plants in this country is about
SIC, 200, 900, and this does not include
Investments made by factory owners
in farm lands. irrigation works. etc.
Among other things the Senate
called on the Secretary Of Agriculture
to state how much beet sugar can be
produced in the United States. The
secretary replies that we have DEM
Onstrated conditions of soil and eli
mate favorable to beet culture in an
area OF at least pa million acres, and
that II will only take one acre out OF
sugar we now import from foreign
sources.
He estimates "that IL the sugar
! beet were grown throughout those
portions OF the United States adapted
| by nature and with the aid OF irriga
tion to its culture, with system of
rotation including the cultivation OF
the beet every fourth year, 10 million
tons OF beet sugar could be produced
in the United States annually, or
more than the worlds total produc.
tion of sugar at the present time"
1t appears from this report that the
people Of European countries have to
pay good deal more for their sugar
the average retail price of lump sugar
in Naples and Milan was l3i cents
per pound, in Amsterdam "a cents.
in Madrid nearly 0 cents, in Stock
holm II cents, in Vienna and Buda-
pest It cents, In Paris ct cents, In
Dresden and Bremen nearly 6 cents,
and in Brussels 50 cents.
The prices are given for lump sugar
because that is the grade most uni
formly quoted in the European sta
tistics. This grade appears to be
much more generally consumed than
granulated in most countries of Con.
tinental Europe.
The Brussels Sugar Convention,
which went into effect September |,
1908, caused radical reduction Of
the price OF sugar in many European
countries. In Belgium the fall in the
retail price was 3t cents per pound,
in the German cities II cents, and in
Austria Hungary 1t cents.
The secretary gives tlattering ac-
count of the progress made in devel-
oping the beet.sugar industry, and
takes very cheerful view of its fu-
ture prospects. He comedies that
some failures occurred among the ear
lier factories, but shows that the later
factories have been quite uniformly
successful. He says that wherever
factories have been successfully oper-
ated the values of farm lands have
risen very decidedly, especially lands
under irrigation in the far West He
says beet culture improves the land
and educates the farmer. The opera
tion of a factory leads to the invest
ment of capital in many industries
more OF less related to beet-sugar pro-
duction. The by-products-pulp and
mulasses-are fed to stock, and their
use has largely increased the amount
Of live stock kept and fed In most
factory districts.
Beet-sugar factories are now In sue
cessful operation in is states.
Colorado leads all other states en-
gagged In the industry, having l6 fac
tories. In 1907 these produced 10000