Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-06-12
Dnc:arcs Farmer Should Be
Content With Prices He
Gets for Product

Submitted TO Congress q report on
conditions in the beet sugar lndnstEJ
N the United States. IN SUBMITTING
f.s -epor. the commission said:
'.aTho report deals chiefly With the
costs and Profits OF growing sugar
beets. the cost Of manufacturing ana
marketing beet sugar, the protlts III
the manufacture ana sale OF beet su'
gar. and the relations between sugar
I,eef growers and beet-sugar Tnanulac-
tnrers It covers in detail the opera
tiops q. all the beetEugAr factories u
;ea United States, except two small
ones. during the five-year period emo
ing with the business year OF l9lS'ls.
because OF the lack Of FUNDS 70
prusecute work other than that speei-
ificu;ly directed by Congress. TINS re-
mort has been doIayeS, much 70 the
regret Of the commission. II woulo
have been desirable 70 bring the IN
formation down % o later Date Du1
suuch a course vas not possible ne-
cause of tao tack OF an available
force.
A discussion of the economic posi-
t;un Of the Industry is not included IN
the report because II involves the con
EIderatton Of matters strictly WITHIN
the nroYince OF another governmental
aqency, A chapter dealing with TINS
subject has been prepared and H. To-
gether with al the data collected our
ing this investleation, has been turn.
ed over to the United States tariff
commission. s...-
In 1914, 100000 tons Of beet sugar
was produced IN the United states In
70 factories. The four principal cen.
ters Of production were Michigan ana
northern Ohio, Colorado northern
IJtah md southern Idaho. and Caiifor'
MA but ~ other states contributed 20
the total production. Michigan ana
COLORADO each had 1S factories IN
1910. California had Is, Utah z, Idaho
and Ohio s each, and Wisconsin =.
There were ten States that had only
one factory each. California and Cob
ofado produced more than 50 per cent
OF the total production OF the county
during the tive years covered py sns
report. The annual consumption OF
sugar n the United states b approx.
mately l.3D0,oo0 tons, and about 40
per cent o. this was produced n oo.
mestic beet.sugar factories IN lSlS.l4.
Growth 81 Tire Industry
There we're only three beetsugar
factories IN operation IN the uniteo
States A 1870, and thig number naa
increased % only nine BY 1877, put
in 1919. A already stated, there were
~ Ths urodncfion has Increased
from less than l5:0oO tons u .iess 20
more man 70o.o00 tons IN 1914. -
The rapid DEVELOPMENT Of the fn0u.'
try after 1897 has been largeiy due g
direct measurement BY the federn
md STATE rovernmeuks. particularv
Ere former. Whfie customs tariffs
have Afforded large measure OF pro.
tection % the industry since 1883, y
was not until after the tariff act o.
1897 thaf TIE rapid development OF the
indusfry beEarl. In 1897 Michigan en-
acted 4 state bounty law which great
~ stirnnlrted the building Of factories
n that state. Soon Afterwards other
states enacted similar laws, put tney
were all. including those Of Michigans
soon repealed o.. declared unconstita'
tional.
Cost 81 Producing Beet sugar
THE average cost for 81 factories
nrodnoine s6 per cent OF al the beet
snear m the United States during the
five years ending with the season
1914 was Sa.7l per 100 pounds. IN
cluding depreciation. which for these
Factories averaged IS cents. The az.
erare cost OF IS factories producing
"a 6er cent 81 the sugar was ss.46; the
average for % factories producing q
per cent 81 the sugar was tS.se. ~
the other hand, q factories producing
Is per cent OF the sugar had an aver.
ase cost Of Sl.st. There was q wide
rsnee az cost IN different factories.
THE lowest average cost for any fac.
tory for the five-year period. tnciuo-
inr deprecfation, was t2.ea. and the
hlehesf was Se.1s per 100 pounds.
Spesking broadly, this wide variation
was due mainly TO differences IN the
cost OF beets per 100 pounds o. sugar.
but there were also wide differences
IN tho cost OF manufacture. The aver.
see cost OF beets per 100 pounds Of
sugar for these 50 factories during
the fiye-year period ranged from Sl.s4
TO Sl.4S, while the additional cost OF
production. including overhead ex.
penses but not including depreciation,
ranged from ~ cents 70 $40. In Gen.
erai, hieh cost OF beets Is accompan
led BY high cost Of sugar.
There was also . notably wide W
Ration in average costs In different
states. The lowest average cost for
the iire-year period. including depre
citation. was 1927 per 100 pounds In
California, and emitting the states
that had only one factory each the
highest average cost was Sass tn Wis
consln. The average cost Of beets in
California for the fiye-year period was
only $2.0s per Ice pounds Of sugar,
while In Wisconsin &C was $3.50.
Earnings In the Beet Sugar Business
With respect 60 earnings the report
covers 81 companies operating "a Tao
tories, that produced nearly 80 per
cent OF ali The beet sugar manufac-
tired In the United States during the
five years ending with the season
E9l3-lt During this period these COM
panies earned IN the sugar manufac.