Steevo
Member
- Location
- Gloucestershire
Could do with a private forum on here for beet growers or something to be able to discuss ideas. Might reduce the ability to divide and rule.
British Sugars Penultimate Sugar Campaign. 2021/22
- Thread starter Daniel
- Start date
Could do with a private forum on here for beet growers or something to be able to discuss ideas. Might reduce the ability to divide and rule.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
No chance. The balance of power within DEFRA and the civil service generally now lies with with the eco fascists. At one time they would have been sat on by an older generation of pragmatists who knew what hard times and real difficulties were. Those steady hands have gone now and we are on the fast route to eco nutter driven disaster in my view. The lunatics have taken over the asylum.
What we need are more leaders who don’t actually listen to advisors but keep them in their place and balance conflicting demands and priorities. It’s a sad reflection on the quality of those going into politics from local to national level that they all rely on and hide behind consultants and advisors (led by science etc) when such raw opinion and data is no substitute for judgement and leadership.
I dread to think how much of a mess my business would be in if I had listened to every advisor over the years.
- Location
- Breckland
I won't be signing a 3 year deal....
But, I won't be signing a 1 year deal either.
But, I won't be signing a 1 year deal either.
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
I think you've hit the nail on the head there Doc, I have had several old'ens tell me that sadly we need a real food shortage with people actually going to bed hungry. Not just a scare that they might not have imported exotic fruit for a few days, along with a period of real hardship for the nation.
It sounds horrible but is what's needed before the powers that be start to realise what's what.
- Location
- Breckland
Don't be sad.
Face facts. Most growers need more than BS are currently offering. BS can't afford to pay any more.
Face facts. Most growers need more than BS are currently offering. BS can't afford to pay any more.
Even if you get 80t/ha this year?
- Location
- Breckland
I will grow 80+ this year. But it will cost me alot to achieve it.
You could do a group pm message amongst yourselves
Beyond me why anyone ever signed a 3 year deal. It was obvious it was putting the balance of power with BS knowing they had a guaranteed area.
ollie989898
Member
I agree, should be an annual negotiation and meeting way ahead of the season, probably best to do it in July just before harvest so people have options. Price, payment terms and delivery requirements. Simple. All out in the open and no behind doors negotiations with folk like the NFU.
Steevo
Member
- Location
- Gloucestershire
That would work too.
N.B Never grown beet so not really my place to comment further. Just seemed like a sensible way to connect growers.
- Location
- Suffolk
Is it really so simple. No good holding the balance of power for 3 years if you upset all growers who then leave at the end of the contract. It’s a 2 way street.
The price needs to increase. BS say they don’t have the money. Fair enough, that’s the end. The next 24 months will see if they are prepared to increase or not...
- Location
- Mid Norfolk
I imagine I'm going to raise a lot of anger with this post, but I'm questioning a lot of what's in this thread.
Nobody is going to earn money from beet this year aside from fert and chem suppliers. They already have our money for product we threw onto an unviable crop. Hauliers and contractors have less tonnage to handle, BS don't have the beet quotas fulfilled and an extended processing period to fund and growers have low yield and low sugars. This desperate situation is raising grower's emotions which are being vented on threads like this one.
As pointed out BS can't afford anything other than a meagre price increase for beet, but they know that we CAN afford to grow them at £20-21/ton as we have accepted that price for half a decade!
I find there's a lot of "old school" thinking when it comes to beet agronomy. Crops musty be clean, green and "meeting in the row by the Norfolk show". Balls. Cut out the 2 applications of escolta, trim back the N, don't fret about the fat hen. Also stop lifting the whole crop the week before the factory opens. Hold some back to top up on the late delivery bonus.
Work the system like BS does against you.
Nobody is going to earn money from beet this year aside from fert and chem suppliers. They already have our money for product we threw onto an unviable crop. Hauliers and contractors have less tonnage to handle, BS don't have the beet quotas fulfilled and an extended processing period to fund and growers have low yield and low sugars. This desperate situation is raising grower's emotions which are being vented on threads like this one.
As pointed out BS can't afford anything other than a meagre price increase for beet, but they know that we CAN afford to grow them at £20-21/ton as we have accepted that price for half a decade!
I find there's a lot of "old school" thinking when it comes to beet agronomy. Crops musty be clean, green and "meeting in the row by the Norfolk show". Balls. Cut out the 2 applications of escolta, trim back the N, don't fret about the fat hen. Also stop lifting the whole crop the week before the factory opens. Hold some back to top up on the late delivery bonus.
Work the system like BS does against you.
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
The trouble is there's not a lot of room to cut costs in beet like other crops. For example a cereal crop can use FSS beet it's £80 an acre with no options. Weed control is essential for beet to yield and you only have a select few chemicals to use with no cheaper options, in cereals if you so wished you could get a crop by just using cheap hormones in the spring for pence per acre.
How can fert be cut in beet???? The base fert is for the crop or to replace off take as a mantainance dressing, if you cut that it's going to affect the whole rotation, I use muck so that supplies a big part of my fert requirement again if I didn't use it ahead of beet I'd use it else where but would need more form the bag for beet.
Fungicides again are essential but the trouble here is there isn't the cheap options, a cereal crop can be grown with £25 ha fungicide or £125 ha.
What else can I do to shave a bit from the costs???? I drill my beet with a cheap drill and a tractor which is appreciating in value, I get my seed bed by ploughing and pressing in one pass, if I didn't plough how much would that really save me???
Weed beet are usually pulled when I walk the dog of an evening in summer.
I can't see how beet can be grown cheaper without loosing yield which would make the job worse and would loose even more ££££
How can fert be cut in beet???? The base fert is for the crop or to replace off take as a mantainance dressing, if you cut that it's going to affect the whole rotation, I use muck so that supplies a big part of my fert requirement again if I didn't use it ahead of beet I'd use it else where but would need more form the bag for beet.
Fungicides again are essential but the trouble here is there isn't the cheap options, a cereal crop can be grown with £25 ha fungicide or £125 ha.
What else can I do to shave a bit from the costs???? I drill my beet with a cheap drill and a tractor which is appreciating in value, I get my seed bed by ploughing and pressing in one pass, if I didn't plough how much would that really save me???
Weed beet are usually pulled when I walk the dog of an evening in summer.
I can't see how beet can be grown cheaper without loosing yield which would make the job worse and would loose even more ££££
Hindsight
Member
- Location
- Lincolnshire
Think you are being a tad optimistic. But each to their own. I think you will have pretty much free loading permits all to your self from 2023. You may well be the sole supplier to Wissy and can have one hell of a contract.
- Location
- Mid Norfolk
My quota would keep wissey running for about 20 minutes!Think you are being a tad optimistic. But each to their own. I think you will have pretty much free loading permits all to your self from 2023. You may well be the sole supplier to Wissy and can have one hell of a contract.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
- Location
- Lincolnshire
Be cheaper to take over when the factories are mothballed then while it's making £100m profit though.
- Location
- Somerset UK
As I get older I'm starting to not give a phuc anymore, if we end up with food shortages sod em, at least we will have the enjoyment of saying "Told you"