At the American Crystal Sugar Company annual meeting in Fargo, Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association Executive Director Harrison Weber said growers are facing pressure from global competitors, especially as countries like Brazil increase sugar exports to the U.S. market. “I think the thing we need to ask ourselves as consumers here is, do we want to have access to a domestic product, or do we want to be able to buy that from other countries? If our answer is we want a domestic crop, well then we need to support a strong U.S. sugar program.” The beet sector is anxious to learn more about potential bridge payments from USDA. “We are traditionally not part of the economic style assistance packages, and the reality across the industry is that this is needed and this is important, and really without it I think we will see some guys go out of business.”
