The Sugar Beet 



The commercial sugar of the world is obtained from the juice of the 

 sugar beet and the sugar cane. The sugar cane is by far the older source 

 of sugar, and its history may be traced down to remote periods of antiquity. 

 The extraction of sugar crystals from the juice of the beet is usually ascribed 

 to Marggraf, a Prussian chemist who completed his first successful experi- 

 ment in 1747. Supported by royal bounty, his successors improved the 

 processes of extraction, and in 1799 at Cunern in Silesia, the first beet sugar 

 factory in the world was constructed. The beet sugar industry was further 

 stimulated by Napoleon, who established technical schools in 1811, and ap- 

 propriated funds for the development of the industry. However, we are 

 here less concerned with the historical than the practical economic aspects 

 of the sugar industry. 



Sugar "The sugar beet," says the United States Tariff Commission, 



Content "is a highly specialized product of careful selection in breeding. 



In the early years of the nineteenth century, when the beet- 

 sugar industry was established in France, the beets contained from 5 to 6 

 per cent sugar. American grown beets now average from 14 to 19 per cent. 

 Until very recently American farmers have been dependent upon imported 

 seed, chiefly from Germany and Russia." Successful production of sugar 

 beets requires an adequate supply of cheap and suitable seed and production 

 of seed requires a great deal of manual labor and expert scientific supervision. 

 In seed culture as well as beet sugar production, Germany still leads the world. 



Beet The seeds of the sugar beet are planted in the spring of the 



Cultivation year and the beets mature in the early fall. After the young 

 beets come through the soil, they must be carefully thinned, so 

 as to permit growth to the proper size. During the growing season, weeds 

 must be checked and the soil kept loose by cultivation. Beet culture is 

 attended with the usual agricultural risks, such as lack of sunshine, drought, 

 frost, and pests. Apparently the sugar beet must be raised in temperate 

 regions for culture in warmer climates is not feasible because of decreased 

 sugar yields. In the beet sugar industry, there is always the ever present 

 possibility of reduction of production due to the cultivation of more profitable 

 crops. Thus, if wheat prices are high and sugar prices are low, the wheat 

 areas will be extended and the sugar beet areas will be reduced. In order to 

 preserve the fertility of the soil in which sugar beets are grown, it is necessary 

 to practice rotation or to use large amounts of commercial fertilizers. In 

 some regions the beets are grown on irrigated lands. 



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