While the world of GMO sugarbeets can seem a bit murky with lawsuits, rulings and comment periods often overlapping, the majority of regional growers that contract with Western Sugar are now able to pick up their Roundup Ready sugarbeet seed. In order to be on the list of producers eligible for the product, each farmer has had to take compliance training and report the GPS coordinates of each of his or her fields. These steps were necessary for the Roundup Ready sugarbeets grown this spring per the USDA partial deregulation.
Kent Wimmer, Director of Shareholder Relations for Western Sugar, spoke with us about the necessary compliance for growers.It’s the rule of thumb that beets go in after barley. With barley planting lagging behind this year, Kent said that they are already feeling a little delayed. He remained positive saying that, if the weather cooperates, we can get the beets planted in a timely fashion.
© Northern Ag Network 2011
Haylie Shipp
