Beet yields 2020

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
Playing devils advocate here but they did know what they were signing up too and at 21 quid the odds were pretty favourable that the price would go up rather than down at some point.

Yes, do not disagree with your sentiment. My post said the figures kinda rub it in. And that is all. Most of the growers I know who have another year to run are accepting of the fact but have no intention of signing up to extend the contract for anther year to gain the £25tonne. They consider the rainbow will be forever moving ahead. Will be interesting to know if a few months the amount of BS beet on longer than one year contracts. Cheers.
 

robbie

Member
BASIS
The only way out is for growers to take the hit now and end there multi year deals. As you say I can quite easily see BS doing these sort of tricks everyear to keep people tied in for multiple years.

I still think NFUS should never have agreed to a multi year deal in the first place. It undermined the whole job, secured 60% of BS area and put growers in a weak position to negotiate.😡
 

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
The only way out is for growers to take the hit now and end there multi year deals. As you say I can quite easily see BS doing these sort of tricks everyear to keep people tied in for multiple years.

I still think NFUS should never have agreed to a multi year deal in the first place. It undermined the whole job, secured 60% of BS area and put growers in a weak position to negotiate.😡

One begins to wonder the relevance of the NFU sugar board in the negotiation of prices between contract grower and BS. NFU do not get involved as far as I know with negotiating price of potatoes with McCains. Or any other commodity. A legacy of the past??
 

Breckland Boy

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Breckland
BS love negotiating with nfus. Much better than negotiating individual contracts. We the growers pay nfus to negotiate on our behalf. Who gains?
The nfus board is an easy first step on the ladder of the NFU gravy train. It needs to go, just like red tractor assurance for beet. Waste of time and money.
The beet fieldsman are perfectly placed to administer tick box assurance.
 

DrWazzock

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
Started harvesting, headlands, awkward bits round poles, gearings etc. Not going full throttle yet as no green light from haulier. Tipping but not heaping it so it doesn’t deteriorate too much.
Massive crop volume wise though I have no loads in to analyse yet.
No doubt they will want it when the heavens have opened as per usual.
Still using the Standen Cyclone but this really is it’s last year due to wearing parts availability and my dodgy knees etc.
Toying with the idea of a contractor but not that keen for various reasons, cost, small yard, wet land in winter.
I think next year everything will go through the combine. Maybe keep the cyclone for fodder beet of the sheep come back but really there is usually enough surplus beet available and it’s so much easier to have a load tipped than go through the grow your own rigmarole.
 

DrWazzock

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
150 tons lifted over 4 days on and off with my old year 1970 single row cyclone. Pad full so stopped now and not sure when it can be moved. Now waiting for the 21st century hi tech factory to get a move on and shift it. Some beet so big they got stuck between the turbine and the roof of the turbine. Huge crop. Must be doing 100 t/ha but it’s a nice field and was in grass for 5 years.
 

thorpe

Member
Again, you've hit the nail on the head.......except grandad has been pushing up daisies since 2002 but dad who's 66 has taken the rains of waxing lyrical about beet with very highly rose tinted glasses.

I do very much enjoy growing beet too🤦🤦🤦🤦🤦🤦
i like growing beet. fodder beet! no top tare no dirt tare more tons more £ and i i can harvest them when i want to not when bs want me to. i dont miss growing sugar beet one bit.
 

DrWazzock

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
i like growing beet. fodder beet! no top tare no dirt tare more tons more £ and i i can harvest them when i want to not when bs want me to. i dont miss growing sugar beet one bit.
Well this slow movement of just about everything is quite frustrating. Been a year of it. I really want to clear a field of beet, get it ploughed and in with wheat while its nice and dry and going well. But just can't shift the beet.
I wonder how long it will keep in a heap in the field at this time of year? Normally I store in my shed and load out of it, but would not leave it in there more than a fortnight at this time of year.
The Mrs is pestering for a day out. I need to think of something to keep the harvester moving.:)
 

alomy75

Member
Well this slow movement of just about everything is quite frustrating. Been a year of it. I really want to clear a field of beet, get it ploughed and in with wheat while its nice and dry and going well. But just can't shift the beet.
I wonder how long it will keep in a heap in the field at this time of year? Normally I store in my shed and load out of it, but would not leave it in there more than a fortnight at this time of year.
The Mrs is pestering for a day out. I need to think of something to keep the harvester moving.:)
Should be fine for 2-3 weeks I would have thought.
 

DrWazzock

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
Did you ask the haulier if he could shift them before you started?
Yes. He indicated that he might be able to move some next week. So it’s a gamble and a trade off. I lifted some in the hope he is right and that factory throughout improves. If I didn’t lift any I’m risking pulling beet out of a sticky wet field later and missing a chance to get wheat in. I also have the electricity board wanting to change the electric poles in that field so I have harvested to make access to the poles. They would not go well after they had driven over them.
Anyway done what I can without a crystal ball.
Growing it again next year. Found a load of spares on eBay.
 

thorpe

Member
lifting fodder beet today only afew load but son had a ring round all sold so set cleaner up for tomorrow and we will get a few more out while conditions are good. ps had to take row guides off and steer on manual as beet wouldnt go through them!
 

Rookie

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincs / Notts
Newark factory start of this week. Coal drier broken resulting in reduced slice. Should be sorted in the next 36-48 hours.
Factory has been going over a month now and still not running properly. Looks like a long campaign. 😪
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 78 42.9%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 63 34.6%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.5%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 5 2.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,286
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
Top