# Sugar Beet Profitability in Lubelskie Province, Poland
## 1 Introduction  
The European sugar industry has traditionally relied on the production of sugar from sugar beets, which are now also valued for their positive environmental effects [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. These benefits include the absorption of carbon dioxide by the plant's abundant foliage and the prevention of soil erosion due to sugar beet tops left in the field [6]. Although sugar can be extracted from various plants containing sucrose, the highest sucrose concentration is found in sugarcane. However, in temperate climates where sugarcane cannot be cultivated, sugar is primarily produced from sugar beets, making them a highly efficient crop in terms of arable land use. As a result, sugar producers continue to show strong interest in sugar beet cultivation, by increasing production, which remains economically profitable [7, 8, 9, 10, 11]. The cost of sugar beet production is significantly influenced by the production system,which is closely linked to the fertility of the soil on which the beets are grown [12]. The highest revenues have been observed in the case of strip tillage in autumn or spring, as well as conservation tillage with either mixed or unmixed stubble intercrops in spring [13; 14]. Currently, growers possess considerable knowledge regarding tillage, fertilization, and crop protection, enabling the effective implementation of modern farming systems. These practices contribute to high crop quality and yields, increased income, and improved soil productivity, organic matter balance, and water retention [15; 16; 17]. The European Union's environmental and climate protection strategy compels agricultural producers to reduce the use of certain plant protection products in order to improve raw material quality for healthy food production or to support organic farming practices [18; 19; 20; 21; 22]. The EU's agricultural outlook for 2022-2032 forecasts a reduction in sugar beet cultivation area to 1.45 million hectares by 2032 [23]. This decline is primarily due to the lack of effective alternatives to banned crop protection products--particularly neonicotinoids--which has led many farmers to switch to other crops. As a consequence, sugar beet yield growth is expected to stabilize at approximately 73.5 t/ha across the EU in the medium term [21]. As a result of declining acreage and stable yields, EU sugar production is expected to decrease gradually--from an average of 15.8 million tons in 2023-2025 to 15.5 million tons by 2032 [23]. Meanwhile, sugar consumption in the EU is steadily declining, mainly due to a healthier diet selection by consumers [3; 11]. This will impact the types of food produced and the substances they contain, thereby altering food production processes, including their design and control. Control and modeling of production processes in the food industry are often nonlinear--this characteristic must be accounted for from the early stages of production [24; 25; 26; 27]. In Poland, sugar beet cultivation covered 251,349 hectares in 2020, 250,078 hectares in 2021, and 222,762 hectares in 2022. These figures are confirmed by both the Agency for Restructuring and Modernization of Agriculture (ARiMR) and the Central Statistical Office (CSO) [28]. Depending on the region, Polish growers supply sugar beets to four major sugar producers: the National Food Group (Krajowa Grupa Spozywcza, KGS) with 10 sugar factories; Suedzucker Polska with 4 factories; Pfeifer & Langen, also with 4 factories; and Nordzucker Polska with 2 factories. In the Lublin region, the Krasnystaw sugar plant, which is a part of Krajowa Grupa Spozywcza S.A., procures sugar beets from local growers. The facility has undergone extensive modernization in recent years, acquiring new equipment that enhances both safety and efficiency in the technological sugar production process [29; 30]. In the Krasnystaw branch, sugar beets were cultivated by 3523 growers in 2020, by 3546 in 2021, and by 2979 in 2022, across areas of 19,569 ha, 17,143 ha, and 14,264 ha, respectively (data provided by the Krasnystaw Sugar Factory).