COST OF PRODUCING SUGAR BEETS IN UTAH AND IDAHO. 15 
other farm expenses to pay the going interest rate on the land invest- 
ment. It will be admitted that the values which obtained under war 
conditions were in part speculative values. In a period of declining 
prices for farm products, adjustments have to be made in the farm 
business. One adjustment that should receive early consideration 
has to do with land valuation. Success in the arrangement of the 
farm will depend in part upon the earnings that accrue and are avail- 
able to pay for capital. If the land is overvalued, the rate may be 
exceedingly low. 
TasLeE XI.—Cost of sugar beets per acre (excluding use of land) and percentage return on 
investment as influenced by land values. 
Percentage return on invest- | Aver- 
MFPs | Naa ae Berar Mar ment with land at— nee 
Region. Year.) ber of | per on per oa Sale 
farms. | acre. ae acre.} are as re- 
$200 | $300 | $400 | $500 | $600 ported. 
Utah: * Tons. 
Ib See Se een ae 1918 44| 16.1 |$132. 77 |$168.08 |$35.31 | 17.7 | 11.8) 8.8] 7.1] 5.9 $215 
ae arid bc nay Ses 1918 58 15.8 | 108.63 | 162.73 | 54.10 | 27.0 | 18.0 | 18.5] 10.8 9. 0 259 
aho: 
Idaho Falls and 
Blackfoot .....- 1918 Ag eel Se | One 4 Daal p44 AON O2m nO NOM ial sersulil ON Olen SeOnlOsed 228 
Mwyan)-Baliseses: <. 1919 44 10.9 | 102.10 | 124.88 | 22.78 | 11.4 7.6 ycartA 4.6 3. 8 442 
| 
1 Ineluding beets and beet tops. 
If the different values as given by these farmers are applied, it will 
be seen that there was quite a wide range in the returns on invest- 
ment. Relatively good yields were reported in the three districts 
surveyed in 1918, while in the fourth district, surveyed in 1919, the 
crop was rather poor. This fact should not be overlooked in making 
a comparison of results. With the unfavorable conditions that 
obtained at Twin Falls and the comparatively high land values shown 
in these estimates, it was not possible to earn a high interest rate. 
A study of results through a series of years in all of these districts 
would doubtless be of great value. From the standpoint of farm 
organization it is highly desirable to compare one enterprise with 
another, using the interest earned on investment as a basis for judging 
results. 
VALUE OF TOPS. 
More attention is being given from year to year to the utilization 
of beet tops. The high price of hay in the intermountain region 
within the past two years has compelled farmers in this area to 
conserve the supplies of roughage on the farm. Beet tops have 
therefore been saved and have been fed more carefully within recent 
years than formerly. Certain methods of handling beet tops entail 
considerable waste under present systems of management. On 
some of these farms the beet tops were sold to men who had cattle 
