Sugar beet is a member of the common beet plant family. The beet consists of green foliage and, under the ground, a large taproot. In the summer months, the leaves convert air, water and sunlight into the foodstuff we know as sugar. The sugar is photosynthesised in the leaves and stored in the root as it grows during the summer. The root, the beet, is then harvested in the autumn in order to extract the sugar.