9-17 IAN Sugarbeet Economy

 Sugarbeets in 2011? Who knows but a lot of people in Idaho care. I’m David Sparks….

A recent decision by U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White ruled against the planting of sugar beets, using genetically modified seeds. In effect, that can put the vast, vast majority of sugar beet producers out of business and I asked farmer, former Idaho State representative and Executive Director, of Growers for Biotechnology Douglas R. Jones what the economic impact would be: “Huge. For a couple of reasons. All those acres that are in sugar beets now, a lot of them won’t go to sugar beets if they have to go back to conventional seed. That has a ripple effect because the sugar factories are farmer owned co-ops that employ a lot of people, there’s a huge economic rippl through those communities where the factories are located and the economics to the country, of the sugar supply are huge because every sugar beet area in the U. S. is operated by a farmer owned co-op. So it impacts those farm communities in not being able to grow sugar beets, it impacts the factories, it impacts all the employees of the factories and the money they spend in their communities.” Cap that with the knowledge that sugarbeets for sugar production, never go to seed so there’s no risk of them ever going to seed or pollinating.