At the end of this week, American Crystal Sugar Company is hoping the weather forecast will stay true, and that they will be able to start the stockpile sugarbeet harvest at their Northwest Minnesota factories. At this time, it looks like the earliest possible start date with cool enough temperatures are forecasted for Sunday, October 10.
Eric Ptacek is the Agronomy Manager for the American Crystal Sugar’s Crookston and East Grand Forks Districts, and he talked more about the delay. “We’ve had years where we’ve pushed things back because of the heat, but probably not this extreme,” said Ptacek. “There have been heat shutdowns in the past, and anytime our root temperatures are above 55-degrees, we do have concerns and need to shut down. With this warm weather right now, our root temperatures are just a little too warm to stockpile.”
Ptacek mentioned they manage inventory based on weather projections and factory slice rates. They are still piling a few locations to keep factories going before the stockpile harvest begins. It’s a balancing game of having enough Sugarbeets piled to keep factories in operation while not taking up slabs once the stockpile harvest begins.
Ptacek also talked about the content he’s been seeing with Sugarbeets that have been pulled. “With the warm temperatures, the quality continues to get a little better,” said Ptacek. “We’re gaining sugar each day the sun shines, as well as some tonnage as the Sugarbeet continues to grow. Sugarbeets continuously grow and add sugar, so the sunshine is good for that. However, we do need to get the Sugarbeets harvested in the right condition to minimize storage losses in the pile.”
When harvest season is operating in full swing, it can be a busy time on the roads. Ptacek wants to remind people to drive safe and be careful during the harvest season. “It’s hectic during harvest season, and if we get any precipitation, there can be mud on the roads from the trucks,” said Ptacek. “In general, there are more trucks on the roadway this time of year, so we just ask everyone, including the truck drivers, to slow down and be safe so we can have a safe harvest and safe campaign.”
As the stockpile harvest progresses through October, we will check back in with Ptacek for another update.
