Michigan Sugar Co. has made the decision to have its growers harvest 100 percent of their sugar beet acreage.
Previously, with record-breaking yields on the horizon, the grower-owned cooperative was not sure if it could process all of the beets from this year’s crop. Due to this uncertainty, they asked growers to hold off harvesting about 5 percent of their sugar beets. Now, with 75 percent of the crop harvested, and final yields estimated at 30 tons per acre, Michigan Sugar Co. officials are confident they can handle the full delivery of approximately 4.8 million tons. The harvest should be completed within the next seven to 10 days.
Michigan Sugar is the third largest beet sugar processor in the United States. The company is a cooperative owned by nearly 1,000 sugar beet growers, employing about 700 year-round employees and an additional 1,600 seasonally. The cooperative generates over $600 million annually in direct economic activity in the local communities in which it operates.
Each year, Michigan Sugar produces nearly one billion pounds of sugar under the Pioneer and Big Chief brand names.
Source: www.ourmidland.com