U.S. sugar production in the 1990’s

A short description of the beet and cane sugar industry in the USA is given. Beets are grown in four climatically very different regions of the USA: Great Lakes, the Red River Valley, the Great Plains and the West. The yields vary between 38.0 and 60.5 t/ha. In the 90s beet growing has expanded in the Red River Valley, while it has remained constant in the other regions. The production costs per ha vary between 1562 $/ha in Great Lakes area and 2470 $/ha in the west, at an average of 2000 $/ha. The cane sugar industry in Louisiana has expanded, while sugar production in Hawaii and Puerto Rico is decreasing because of the high production costs. At the beginning of the decade was the share of beets to cane sugar about 50:50. Today it has shifted in the direction of beet sugar. Sugar sales in the USA increase by about 2% annually. Today it is only 5% below the record level of approx. 9mn t in 1980 when the soft drink industrie began to change over to isoglucose (HCFS).