COSTS OF PRODUCING SUGAR BEETS 
in manufacturing processes through the research of German scientists. 
Moreover, legislation in Germany was consistently encouraging to the 
industry. By 1878 Germany surpassed France as a beet-sugar pro- 
ducing country’ and since then it has led the world in its production. 
HISTORY OF THE SUGAR~-BEET INDUSTRY IN THE UNITED STATES 
The first effort to grow sugar beets in the United States was made 
about 1830 at Ensfield near Philadelphia. Beets were grown from 
seed imported from France by the Beet Sugar Society of Philadelphia 
but there is no record of the building of a factory. The first factory 
on record was erected at Northampton, Mass., in 1838, where beets 
were grown from seed imported from France. The beet yield was 
satisfactory, but the sugar content was so poor and production was 
on such a small scale that the enterprise was unsuccessful and the 
factory was closed after 1840. After the settlement of Utah in 1847 
the Mormon pioneers endeavored to establish beet-sugar manufac- 
ture as well as other home industries. Heavy freight charges played 
an important part in the early history of the sugar-beet industry in 
the West and have continued to retard its development. 
In the forties it was necessary to haul all manufactured goods from 
the Missouri River to Salt Lake City by team. Sugar ranged in price 
from 40 cents to a dollar per pound. To remedy this situation sugar- 
factory machinery was brought by boat from England to New Orleans 
and then up the river to Fort Leavenworth, Kans. From that point 
52 ox teams were required for two months in hauling the machinery 
to Utah. Difficulty was encountered in getting the sugar to crys- 
tallize, and only sirup was made. This early Utah project was finally 
abandoned in 1855. 
It was not until nearly 1890 that sugar-beet production became 
venerally successful in the United States. Attempts by various people 
in different parts of the country had failed either because of unfavorable 
economic conditions, poor quality of beets, or defective machinery. 
Finallyin 187032 a successful factory was established at Alvaredo, Calif. 
[n 1888, a factory was built at Watsonville, Calif., which, during the 
first year, manufactured 1,000 tons of sugar; in 1890, a factory was built 
at Grand Island, Nebr., and in 1891, one at Norfolk, Nebr., and another 
at Chino, Calif. From this time on the growth of the industry has 
been constant and at times rapid. During the period 1906-1910, the 
production of domestic beet sugar for the first time surpassed that of 
continental cane-sugar production in the United States. At that time 
the average crop was 3,900,000 tons of beets, harvested from 386,000 
acres, and the average production of beet sugar was 480,000 tons. 
Since then, while the cane-sugar industry has been declining the 
beet-sugar industry has been expanding so that during the period, 
1921-1925, the average crop was 6,600,000 tons of beets harvested 
from about 700,000 acres. During each of two years, 1921 and 1924, 
>f this period, production of beet sugar exceeded 1,000,000 tons. 
The development of the industry since 1909 is shown in Table 3. 
{n the pefiod 1909-1925 the number of factories in operation increased 
[rom 65 to 88 and the annual output of beet sugar increased from 
something over 500,000 short tons to about twice that quantity. 
 Departinent of Agriculture Rept., 1870, p. 211