Western Railroad Discussion > Could this mean that Sugar Beets may make a come back in Calif.

Its reported there is a Sugar shortage around the world. Will Beet growers in California respond to the call if the price is right.  who knows. ! If they do will beet trains be not too far off. 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/the-world-is-running-short-of-sugar-and-top-buyer-wants-more/ar-BBZUKlg?ocid=spartandhp

 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/13/20 19:32 by czuleget.

Sounds more like an opportunity for corn syrup producers to sell their stuff outside the US.
But health considerations may indeed return beets and cane sugar, stranger things have happened.
Now the real problem is that beets have been a low margin business, in the PSR era would railroads even want to haul it?

railstiesballast Wrote:
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> Sounds more like an opportunity for corn syrup
> producers to sell their stuff outside the US.
> But health considerations may indeed return beets
> and cane sugar, stranger things have happened.
> Now the real problem is that beets have been a low
> margin business, in the PSR era would railroads
> even want to haul it?

Maybe not Union Pacific, but possibly Burlington Northern Santa Fe. BNSF seems more customer oriented.

SantaFeRuss

Beets use a lot of water, I wouldn't bet on it.

I was thinking the sugar beet plants have been either been demolished or shuttered. Santa Maria, Spreckles, Dyer for example.

Posted from Android

Unit beet trains seem like a natural fit with all of unused coal hoppers parked all over the country.  

sphogger

California land has become more and more the home of high dollar crops ie nuts. They've made inroads into the Kingman
area as well but are facing major opposition due to water table drawdown. Beets could make a comeback but I'd think the
processing would be changed, beet plants were the pits to work in!

Out 

wish i had taken better photos as a kids when they passed my house every day.

If sugar beets make a comeback, they will be hauled much longer distances to the few existing plants - near Brawley in the Imperial Valley, and possibly one or two plants still extant around Manteca/Tracy?  The longer haul would make the rails more interested.

Norm

 

Norman Orfall
Helendale, CA
TIOGA PASS, a private railcar

What would they ship the Beets in?

If I remember the SP used old wooden Gondolas. 
And then used old open Hopper cars.

 

Jerry Martin
Los Angeles, CA
Central Coast Railroad Festival

GP25 Wrote:
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> What would they ship the Beets in?
>
> If I remember the SP used old wooden Gondolas. 

Yes, with manually initiated drop bottoms. The unloader at the beet plant would trip the safety catch to the disengage position, and then trip the drops to the unload position, allowing gravity to fill the troughs for the campaign. I don't know of any roto dumps at any of the existing beet plants; but yes, sure would be a good way to utilize existing idled cars if the opportunity is there.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/14/20 03:16 by IC1038west.

         A temporary shortage of sugar doesn't mean anyone is going to rebuild sugar beet plants or pull 600 coal hoppers out of storage and rebuild the unloading systems. It means you 'might' see less sugar on the shelf for a few weeks.

CHEAPER TO GROW THEM WHERE THE WATER IS

railstiesballast Wrote:
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> Now the real problem is that beets have been a low
> margin business, in the PSR era would railroads
> even want to haul it?

UP has still been hauling beets across southern Idaho just about every year.

Could this mean that Sugar Beets may make a come back in California?

Beats me...

Nomad Wrote:
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> railstiesballast Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> > Now the real problem is that beets have been a
> low
> > margin business, in the PSR era would railroads
> > even want to haul it?
>
> UP has still been hauling beets across southern
> Idaho just about every year.
They are also trucked in from eastern WA too at least were in the last few years still and with trains being fixed loading points makes trucking easier.  All of WA sugar plants are gone now so only one I know of is in ID.  The problem in CA they dont want to talk about is water any where in the state and the nut farmers are taking over in the north.
 

My opinion, not that anyone asked....and a question

1.  The sugar beet refining process is fairly simple.  A new modern efficient processing plant could be built fairliy cheaply.  With a rotary dump for railcars.
The demand would really have to be there, not just a temporary low in inventories

2.   Whats with RR tarriff's?   Isnt weight, weight.  Costs the same to move a ton from A to B, no matter what it is.  But manufactured goods (autos, doubles stack containers) pay the RR's more per ton to haul than raw organic goods, like coal and sugar beets.  Is this some carryover from 100 years ago.  Is this still the case, or did it all change somewhere along the line while was sleeping.

Better talk to some of the beet farmers who have been shafted by the beet co-ops.  Some are still waiting on payments from 4 years ago.  And there are areas where they cannot process the beets fast enough, due to closing plants and the beets are rotting on the ground.

Sugar beet plant in Manteca is long gone and the property redeveloped. 

Growers aren't interested. They like muli-years crops. Water is in short supply. Land going to developers.  Beets can't last in long hot rides. Not happening in CA