Sugarbeets
By Derek Muir
Introduction
The sugarbeet plant is a root crop which grows underground. When fully grown, a sugarbeet weighs two to five pounds and produces about three teaspoons of sugar and about 18 percent of the beet is pure sugar. There are 13 states that produce sugar beets which are California , Colorado, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska,New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. Minnesota is the largest producer of sugar beets in the United States at 443,000 acres of beets.
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The root of the sugar beet plant beneath the soil is called a tuber. Processing the juices from this tuber produces sugar that we use in many ways every day! |
Sugarbeets In Minnesota and North Dakota
North Dakota had 7 counties in the Red River Valley that produced about 3.9 million tons of sugarbeets and Minnesota had over 20 counties that produced about 8 million tons of sugarbeets in 2003. The two states had 654,400 acres of sugarbeets and produced 11.9 million tons of sugarbeets. The region combined to produce nearly 45 percent of the nation's sugar beet crop in 2003.
Employment From The Sugarbeet Industry
Sugarbeet cooperatives were directly responsible for 2,486 full-time jobs in 2003. An additional 30,436 full-time jobs were generated by the sugarbeet industry in Minnesota and North Dakota in 2003.
