ITS HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT 97 



and growth and maturity should make possible improved cul- 

 tural methods, especially in the planting of the roots and in the 

 harvesting of the seed, that will reduce greatly the cost of pro- 

 duction. 



WORLD PRODUCTION OF SUGAR-BEET SEED 



The twenty million tons of sugar annually produced 

 in the world is derived about equally from sugar-beets 

 and from sugar-cane. The cane itself provides the 

 tops and stalks with which to replant or extend the 

 cane area, but beet seed of the best quality can not be 

 produced in many of the sugar-beet areas of the 

 world, and without such seed, no country can pro- 

 duce beet sugar at a profit. 



To produce the 10,000,000 tons of beet-sugar, 20 

 countries have invested upwards of one billion dollars 

 in the erection of 1350 beet-sugar factories, the first 

 requisite for the successful operation of which is an 

 adequate supply of high grade sugar-beet seed, without 

 which failure would be certain. 



That the production and control of most of this 

 seed is vested in less than a dozen wealthy seed growers, 

 some of whom employ $20,000,000 in their seed- 

 growing operations, all of whom are located in the 

 Province of Saxony, the total area of which is less than 



