Evening star., 1923-11-02
SUGAR PNCE'CUTS
STIR UP DEALERS
Retiners Worried by Western
Beet Sugar Coming Into
Eastern Competition.
BY j. G. ROYLE.

npeciai Dispatch to The ster.
NEW YORK. November THE ae-
tive competitive campaign Of the
American beet sugar manufacturers
aimee the slicing of the 1923 beet crop
began has given an entirely new as
peot to the sugar trade. For the frst
time in history beet sugar produced
In the far west has come on markets
as far east as Albany and points In
eastern Pennsylvania 1t, threatens
co invade New York and Philade,-
phia, the strongholds of the eastern
Tefiners. a.
IT had been freely predicted that
sugar prices would drop as soon as
the domestic beet sugar came on the
market, and this has proved to be the
case. Refined sugar, which sold as
high as $50 cents a pound prior to
the marketing of the beet sugar
supply. has dropped to s.7a cents
This means drop of six-tenths- of
cent pound in the last fortnight,
Sugar Trade Nervous.
This fall in prices has caused con-
siderable. nervousness in what is
known professionally as the sugar
trade but housewives and other con
sumers have been profiting from the
with that produced from Cuban raws.
which has dominated the market from
the time prices skyrocketed last
Spying until the domestic product came
ON the market.
The arrival of the domestic crop
on the market came just in time Ito
Prevent another strong advance, ac-
Cording TO some dealers. The latest
reports show that only 13b,0Oo tons
OF raw sugar remain unsold in SMoa,
nh h., Il a
0uirements OF the eastern retneries
exceed 100000 tons. The donestic
product, however. is coming son the
market just as the Cuban Sdpply is
falling.
: Refineries Taken on Gunrd.
The eastern sugar refinad-s who de-
pend almost entirely on the Cuban
crop, were taken completely off their
guard by the invasion of their home
markets The active eastern cam
paigp is regarded as q counter move
by the domestic industry to the ef-
CONS Sf the TeaSe he gesfF tar s
susa., permitting II to come In from
Cuba and other countries without any
duty or government tax whateVer.
This has been urged by them on the
ground that the tariff was responsi-
Bic for nigh sugar prices. Beet sugar
producers asserted last spring that
while the law of supply and demand
Always is a factor in the price OF
sugar, the eastern refiners Were able
70 obtain higher prices than that law
prescribed because they were IN con-
troll of the market until the domestic
sugar came on the market in OCTOBER.
Bumper Sugar Beet Crop.
As,o the extent ~ no -enpettion
the domestic sugars Will exert, re.
ports indicate. that the 1873 crop OF
sugar beets is bumper one. Beet
slicing in the sugar factories is In
full swing night and day from Cali
fornia to Ohio. Predictions OF beet
sugar probation range from 1'o.ooo
10 1,0N0. 600 tons. The additional acre
age planted this year is expected TO
Increase the yield In the neighhortood
OF 800. 900 tons. as sugar .content has
been satisfactory and the yield per
acre up 10 normal, 49,
produce about 81 coo tons. while the
yield from the southeTn California
fields is expected to,T exceed that
amount. The total yield Is expected
10 be greater than that of 1922, when
insect pests caused loss. Some of the
San Joaquin valley beets show
fsugar content Of 19 per cent, and
Yo!o county raisers are shipping 500
to 1900 tons of heets daily.
Grewers' Ineemes Jump.
In Michigan favorable weather late
IN the season added thousands of dol
lars TO growers incomes WIN
contents running as high as IL per
cent. The acreage in Michigan and
Ohio Is somewhere near 15 per cent
greater than last year. 1t is expected
$4,000 tons will be shipped from the
lower Yellowstone project to the Bill
lings. Mont, factory.
Heavy production Is assured In
Colorado and Wyoming. as the storm
which II was feared might fnjure the
crop merely delayed harvesting. Utah
and Idaho each have record beet
yields.
Beet growers aN paid on a sliding
scale, according to the price the
manufactured sugar brings in the
market. The usual arrangement pro-
vides for a payment of ST a ton when
the beets are brought to the factory,
with additional payments il the sugar
sells above a certain price. Final
settlements of the 1922 crop on the
Minidoka project in Colorado brought
the returns to farmers to $s.39. while
other Colorado growers received as
much as SO.
Louisiana Cnne Crop Ready.
The first sugar of the 1923 Louisiana
cane crop came on the market today
The outlook points to 8 small crop,
estimates ranging as low as zoo Oeo
tons, or $4,000 tons less than the ten
year average. The drop in refined
sugar from $50 cents to $40 cents,
the price quoted In New Orleans to-
.day, and the decrease. in the price
refiners are willing to pay for raws
has determined Louisiana planters to
oppose the lowering of the tariff on
sugar as vigorously as the beet men.