Production, processing of beet upgraded

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33964, 3 October 1975, Page 7

Production, processing of beet upgraded

In many ways production and processing of sugar beet has been streamlined in recent years, according to the chairman of the Canterbury Sugar Development Company, Ltd, Mr F. \V. Newton.

Mr Newton is chairman of the company seeking to promote the establishment of an industry in MidCanterbury. In a recent interview he said that it was intended that the proposed MidCanterbury factory would be concerned only with processing raw sugar beet through to refined sugar. Handling of cane sugar at any stage was not envisaged.

In the process thick juice would be stored in sealed tanks for refining later so that refining could continue all the year round and after the initial processing of the beet crop. Studies into the merits of storing juice in this way began in the United States in 1949. and by 1972, it was reported that every major sugar beet company in the country had some thick juice storage. Mr Newton said that the customer used sugar all of the year, and if a beet factory worked only four months of the year sugar would have to be stored for some eight months, so it had been found more economic to store the thick juice in sealed tanks and to refine it throughout the year. In Mid-Canterbury, it was expected that beet harvesting would extend from early April to the middle of August. After the crop had been stockpiled at the factory for two weeks, processing would begin and would probably continue about a month after harvesting had been completed. When processing began refining would also begin, but about 50 to 60 per cent of the thick juice would be diverted to the storage tanks for later refining. Mr Newton said that this system had many advantages over refining the whole crop over the initial beet processing period. It reduced capital outlay on plant including such high cost components as evaporators, crystallisers, and centrifuges, so reducing cost of production. It also provided employment all of the year. Storage of the juice was also less costly than storing sugar in warehouses, and in any case a great deal of sugar used by industry was used in liquid form'and in this case the sugar refined from the juice could be returned to the tanks in liquid form to await use.

The numbers employed in the factory would depend on the degree of automation in the plant and there could be a high level of this. There could be 35 to 40 employed on beet processing and 80 to 100 engaged in harvesting and transport of the crop and general service work in support of the factory. When a factory was running at full capacity there could be at least 150 to 170 permanently employed. One of the advantages of the industry in MidCanterbury would be that handling of the crop would come towards the close of the export lamb and sheep killing season at the freezing works and the busy season for transport companies and also for lucerne meal processing.' Agricultural contractors, he said, were seen as having a useful part to play in the proposed industry, so that in the early stages at least fanners need not have to invest in extra plant. It was envisaged that contractors would provide both sowing and harvesting services. Nineteen contractors had indicated that they would each operate one harvester, two had indicated that they would each have two harvesters, and one would even have four, and 12 had said that they would each have a drill. This would be quite enough equipment to get the industry launched. To co-ordinate this exercise. Mr Newton said, it was envisaged that an organisation of beet sowing and harvesting contractors would be established. Once Mr Newton said that the crop had suffered in that it was regarded as a labour intensive crop, but with improvements in machinery for both sowing and harvesting it had been brought into line with more traditional methods of farming. When they had first been looking into growing the crop the harvesting rate

was about a half-acre to three-quarters of an acre an hour, with two and sometimes three men being involved, but there were now one-man machines that would harvest two acres an hour, lifting the beet and taking off the tops or crowns and placing the beets in windrows. There were also machines that went a stage further, unloading into a trailer alongside, and one of these in a time trial had done 2.8 acres in an hour.

For wet country, where heavy trucks could not be used,' a tanker type of machine was available. This could be used to deposit the beets at the end of rows, or even put them over the fence into an adjoining paddock. It had the capacity to unload two tons and a quarter in about 30 seconds.

Mr Newton said that farmers need not have their whole crop harvested at once. It could be delivered regularly every week or fortnight over the processing season. In the offseason on farms he said that the crop could improve labour utilisation.

Noting that an interdepartmental committee including representatives of the economics division of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, the Trade and Industry Department, the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research and the Treasury was making a feasibility study into the production of sugar from beet, Mr Newton said he

was very confident that the project would go ahead. Mr Newton said recently that a major point in favour of the establishment of a sugar beet industry was the saving of overseas funds. Speaking before the devaluation of the New Zealand dollar in August, he said that the cost of importing a bushel of wheat was about $5. With the average wheat yield in New Zealand being about 50 bushels to the acre, every additional acre put into wheat saved the equivalent

of about $250 in overseas funds. If this land were put into sugar beet it would grow about 15 tons of beet at 17.5 per cent sugar content or about two tons and a half of sugar to the acre. Recently Australia had signed a five-year contract to sell Japan sugar at $405 a ton, but if the price was taken at $350 a ton the saving in overseas funds in growing an acre of beet was about $875. At the same time this acre of land would carry about six ewes to the acre, producing about $B4 in

meat and 30 kilogranis of wool, worth about $3O. or about $ll4, so that the produce from more than 74 acres of land under sheep production would be required to finance the purchase of the sugar that would be produced on one acre. “Are we better to put more acres into sugar beet and say to Australia we will take a little less sugar but more wheat?” Mr Newton asked. In addition to the sugar, Mr Newton said, there would also be the residues from sugar beet production which could be a source of food for livestock for export, so supporting the traditional export industry. Processed beet pulp was now recognised as the next best milk, stimulant to fresh grass, and where an acre of beet was grown the tops or crowns and the processed pulp would produce 30001 b of milk.

Dr M. E. Castle, of the Hannah Research Institute in Scotland, has been quoted as saying “it is concluded that barley and dried molassed sugar beet pulp in the shredded form have the same feed value on a dry matter basis, when used in the production ration of milking cows.” Similarly the tops and crowns and pulp from an acre of beet are reputed to be able to produce 4001 b to 5001 b of beef in a feedlot, and an acre of tops and crowns will provide enough feed for 600 to 800 inlamb ewes for a week.

And in these days when so much attention is being given to possible sources of energy other than oil. Mr Newton says that he understands an acre of sugar beet could produce 425 gallons of ethyl alcohol if it was given over to that purpose rather than sugar production. Mr Newton’s company is continuing to seek shareholdings on the basis of $lOO for each 20 acres of sugar beet that farmers are prepared to grow.

He said that a survey undertaken in Mid-Canter-bury had shown that farmers were prepared to make 10,300 acres available to grow the crop and studies had shown that altogether it could be grown on 260,000 acres in the district, which would provide almost a’l of the sugar that I New' Zealand required.