COSTS OF PRODUCING SUGAR BEETS 25
TABLE 10.—Weighted average costs of production and returns to growers from the
sale of sugar beets
SUMMARY FOR THE UNITED STATES AND ANALYSIS BY STATES, 1921, 1922, AND 1923
[Per pound of sugar extracted from the sugar beets]
Amount by which the
returns to growers
rom the sale of sugar
beets exceed? the
costs of production of
sugar beets ?
Average costs!
Sugar
sxtracted
yer ton of
eets paid
or by the
‘actories ¢
Average
‘eturns to
growers
from the
sale of
wear beets
State and year
No allow-
ance made
for land
‘ental and
interest
on other
rapital 8
Allowance
made for
and rental
and inter-
estat 6
per cent
on other
~apital ¢
No allow-
ance made
for land
‘ental and
interest
on other
capital &
Allowance
made for
and rental
ind inter-
est at 6
per cent
on other
capital ¢
United States:
3-year average. ........
1921...
19%
192
Michigan:
3-Vear average. om ceeeen. .._
921... i
1922 eevee
1923_. _.
Pounds
263. 9
268.1
263. 2
259. 6
Cents
2.35
2.41
2.26
2.34
Cents
2.85
2.97
2.78
2.77
Cents
2.92
2.34
3.04
3. 50
Cents
0. 57
~.07
.78
1. 16
Cenis
0.07
-. 63
.26
.73
29.7
215. 5
229. 4
48 6
3. 10
3. 39
2.79
3.01
3. 61
3. 97
3. 28
3. 46
3.25
2.80
3.15
3.82
. 15
-, 59
. 36
.81
—.36
-1.17
~.13
. 38
Ohio:
3-year average. ..oceceeen--
1921...
197...
1925.
Nebraska:
3-vear average......
1921. aaa
1922...
1923.
Colorado:
3-vear average. _......
1921. Loo
1927. _.
1923.
210. 1
205.1
232.1
01. 2
2.91
3.16
2. 43
3. 05
3.47
3.81
2. 94
3. 59
3.66
2.92
2.96
4.62
. {3
-.24
.83
1.57
.19
-.89
.02
L.03
152.2
274. 5
248.0
230. 0
2.08
2.07
1.78
44
[a
y --
i
2.99
2.40
3.23
3. 56
91
.33
1.45
1.12
.45
-. 18
1.06
.63
1
Wn
256.0
261. C
>
85
‘4
59
29
32
4
.09
-. 19
.04
.49
Utah:
3-vear average_..
1921...
1922___
19%
-—.05
-1.01
.38
67
.19
-.72
. 58
-68
1 When composite figures appear as in the 3-year average for each State and in the figures for the United
States, where the data for the States investigated are combined, the acres of sugar beets harvested are
1sed as weights,
' A minus sign (—) before a figure indicates that costs exceeded returns by the amount indicated.
} See pp. 8 to 14 for explanation of methods of determining costs. }
! The basic data from which the pounds of sugar extracted from a ton of beets were obtained were fur-
nished by the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Sugar extraction from beet roots depends upon the
sugar content, the coefficient of purity, the general condition of the beet roots when sliced, the extraction
and refining processes used, and the efficiency of the mills, These data are restricted to those beets for
which costs were obtained in this investigation, and therefore are not necessarily the same as the data
published by the Department of Agriculture or those published in ‘‘ Concerning Sugar,” which are aver-
ages for all beets sliced by all the factories located in the respective States. .
* Land rental and other capital charges, paid and unpaid, are excluded from this cost. For the United
States as a whole cash rental was actually paid on 5.4 per cent of the acreage harvested and share rental
on 41.7 per cent. On a large percentage of farms, interest, amounting to 20 cents per acre, or about 1.8
cents per ton, was actually paid on cash advances made by the factories to the farmers for the payment
of contract labor. Many of these farms are mortgaged, and interest is actually paid on these farm mort-
gages at rates varying from 5 to 9 per cent and averaging 7.14 per cent. In order to put the data for all
farms on a comparable basis and simplify tabulations, however, all farms were treated as owned by the
operators, and taxes and overhead costs on this rented acreage were included as general costs. and all
capital charges, whether paid or unpaid, were segregated. .
8 The capital charges included here are for all capital embloved in surar-beet production.
DR 04—O
