SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb.—After the sugar factory in Scottsbluff lost at least 10,000 tons of rotten sugarbeets to weather inconsistencies, the University of Lincoln Extension Center is looking into different ways they can salvage the rotten beats in the future.
Back in January, Western Sugar South Regional Manager said the cause of the rotten beets started in November when temperatures went from 40 degrees to negative 20, freezing the beets on the outside and rotting them on the inside.
Cow and Calf Range Management Specialist Karla Jenkins says the Extension Center has already began feeding cows sugarbeet pulp, but they want to look into feeding them whole sugarbeets that can't be processed into sugar.
"Growing feed beets, and so not growing them for sugar but growing them for feed and that's popular in some areas and so we're looking into that here," says Jenkins.
Jenkins says using the sugarbeet pulp in cow's diets has been really successful thus far.
Source: www.kotatv.com