Sugar beets in russia where they grow the most

Where is sugar beet grown in Russia?

• In Russia, sugar beets are grown in thousands of farms. About 30 regions are grown. True, this information is probably outdated because a real farming boom began in Russia last year. And a lot of people took up farming activities. For the region in which I am now (Tatarstan), rather its one district, I can say for sure. Quite a lot is grown in the Almetyevsk region. Even during harvesting, transportations are made at night in order to less interfere with the traffic of the dnm. The Internet is replete with news about Altai sugar beet. I know they bring sugar from Bashkiria, which means they definitely grow it there. And if not just for sugar, but for example for cattle, I think in all regions they grow at least for personal subsidiary plots.

• in Soviet times, she herself was on a collective farm harvesting sugar beets, which means they are grown in the Volga region.

• Russia is one of the leaders in the world production of sugar beet, yielding only a billion Chinese in yield, and the very process of producing sugar from this plant was also mastered for the first time in our country. Therefore, it is not surprising that there are a lot of beets in Russia. The annual yield of this root crop is about 30-50 million tons per year, depending on the season, fruitful-lean years. Most of the sugar beet in Russia is grown in the European part of Russia, in the Central Federal District, the regions of which account for more than half of all sugar beet grown in Russia. These are mainly Voronezh, Tambov, Kursk, Lipetsk and Belgorod regions. Sugar beets are grown, but in smaller volumes in the Volga Federal District and in the Southern Federal District - in the Republic of Tatarstan, the Penza Region and the Krasnodar Territory. There is very little sugar beet in the North Caucasian FD, mainly in the Stavropol Territory, and in the Siberian FD - this is the Altai Republic.

The Russian sugar beet complex in the last two years has shown a pronounced growth dynamics, the maximum amount of sugar beet is grown in the Krasnodar Territory. 2016 became a record year in terms of the amount of collection in kind.

The main raw material for sugar production in Russia is sugar beet; its share has been over 90% since 2012. Import of raw cane sugar has a low share due to the state policy aimed at maintaining the sugar beet complex, as well as not small import duties. In this regard, it is more profitable to produce sugar from beets in Russia than from cane. We present a study reflecting the production of sugar beet in the Russian Federation.

How much sugar do Russians eat?

According to the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR), about 5.5 million tons of sugar are consumed in Russia annually, which is an average of 36-40 kg per person. During the crisis, the consumption of this product in its pure form increases, while the demand for sweets and confectionery products decreases due to their high cost.

Figure 1. How many kilograms of sugar do Russians consume per year (data from 1990 to 2015).

So, in 1990, there was a record per capita consumption (47 kg per year), and the minimum amount was recorded in 1992 (30 kg.), In recent years (from 2011 to 2014, the amount of sugar consumed is 40 kg per year), and in 2015 - 39 kg, see fig. one.

Geography of production: where it is grown in Russia

Sugar beet production in Russia is carried out in more than 30 regions of the country, according to the Ministry of Agriculture at the end of October 2016, the structure of collection in percentage terms by regions of the country is shown in Fig. 2.

Rice.2 Structure of sugar beet cultivation by regions of the Russian Federation (indicators at the end of October 2016)

The leader in percentage terms (18%) is the Krasnodar Territory, in physical terms at the end of October 2016 this indicator amounted to 7,528.7 thousand tons, it is 20.4% higher than in the previous year.

The second region in terms of percentage is the Kursk region. Table 1 shows the quantitative indicators of the 20 leading regions presented in the graph and the dynamics of the top ten leaders in cultivation compared to the previous year.

Krasnodar region	7 528,70	+20,4%
Kursk region	4 604,00	+32,7%
Voronezh	4 570,50	+38,5%
Lipetsk	4 285,90	+28,20%
Tambov	3 775,80	+7,50%
Belgorodskaya		+71,70%
Republic of Tatarstan	2 261,00	+26,50%
Orlovskaya	1 921,50	+25,20%
Penza	1 788,30	+29,50%
Stavropol region	1 592,70	+19,50%
Republic of Bashkortostan	1 288,90	—
Altai region	1 125,30	—
The Republic of Mordovia	1 052,00	—
Rostov region		—
Ulyanovsk region		—
Tula region		—
Ryazan Oblast		—
Saratov region		—
Nizhny Novgorod Region		—
Karachay-Cherkess Republic		—
Other regions		—

How much sugar beet is produced in Russia

In 2016, 1.11 million hectares of agricultural land were sown with sugar beet, which is 8% more than the sown area in 2015. To trace the dynamics, consider how many centners are harvested per hectare, as well as how much the total production was from 2005 to 2015, see table 2.

Productivity (number of centners per hectare of harvested area)
Production (million tons)

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, at the end of October 2016 (at that moment, 83% of the total sown area was dug out), the amount of culture produced has already amounted to 41.755 million tons.

In 2015, as of the same date, 27.2% less was harvested, and in relation to all beets harvested in 2015, the figure in October 2016 is already 7% higher.

According to the preliminary results of Rosstat, in 2016 a total of 48.3 million tons were collected. beets grown by various agricultural producers, including peasant farms (PFs) and households, see table 3

Quantity in kind, million tons
In% to the total amount	100%	87,9%	11.9%	0,2%	—

This indicates a pronounced positive dynamics of production growth, as well as the yield of sugar beet in Russia over the past two years.

In 2016, an average of 460 centners of culture were harvested from one hectare of sown areas (according to Rosstat).

Yield growth and sugar production

On February 1, 2017, the All-Russian Agronomic Conference was held in Moscow. On it, Alexander Tkachev (the current Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation) made a statement that 2016 was a record year for Russia in the number of grown and harvested sugar beets. She was ahead of European countries: Germany, France, and the United States. Such a record harvest makes it possible to produce about 6 million tons of sugar, which will be an absolute achievement for the country. He also said that such a production volume would allow Russia for the first time to act as a major sugar supplier to the world market. The projected export volumes in 2017 are more than 200 thousand tons.

The productivity of the beet sugar complex in the Russian Federation has grown by almost 400% over two decades, sugar production exceeded 5.3 tons per hectare of crops in Russia, see Fig. 3.

Rice. 3 Sugar production in Russia per hectare of sugar beet crops, tons.

The graph shows the dynamics of sugar production from 1 hectare of crops in four macro-regions: Krasnodar, Belgorod-Voronezh, Ufa-Kazan, Altai Territory and Russia as a whole. Krasnodar and Altai Territories beat a record (more than 6 tons) in the collection of crops from each hectare. The forecast of productivity for the next 3-5 years is about 7-8 tons of sugar per hectare.

Industry results and trends

• The beet sugar complex in the Russian Federation has a pronounced growth dynamics in recent years;
• In 2016, a record was recorded for the harvest of sugar beet;
• The sugar market in the Russian Federation remains competitive: there are 33 independent producers (plant operators) in the country; independent producers working on the basis of intermediation and tolling scheme, the number of which is in the hundreds; large wholesale traders, as well as the Belarusian Sugar Company and Rosrezerv.
• In addition to sugar, Russia exports molasses and granulated beet pulp (by-products of sugar beet production).

Sugar beet in Russia is grown mainly as a raw material for the sugar industry, so its cultivation area is located in the Central Black Earth Region, Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories, where the largest sugar factories are concentrated. However, the rather moderate requirements of the crop for heat make it possible to cultivate this type of industrial crop in the Non-Black Earth Zone, provided that a sufficient amount of nutrients are added to the soil for the growth and development of plants.

Another feature of this technical culture is its practically waste-free production, since all waste after sugar production can go to livestock feed, which allows choosing this direction for creating a closed agro-industrial complex.

The area of ​​cultivation of sugar beet

Sugar beets, for all their unpretentiousness to the temperature regime, are quite demanding on the number of sunny days, since this affects the sugar level in the tuber, to the fertility and structure of the soil. It gives the highest yields on cultivated chernozems with their uniform moisture throughout the entire growing season. The most comfortable natural conditions for the cultivation of sugar beets are in the southwestern zone of the European part of the country: Belgorod, Lipetsk, Voronezh regions, the right bank of the Middle and northwest of the Lower Volga region, where the likelihood of droughts is relatively low.

The cultivation of sugar beets in the Non-Black Earth Region is limited by the increased acidity of the soil, which is unfavorable for the cultivation of this crop; in addition, a rather cool climate and a large number of cloudy days reduce the sugar content in tubers and convert sugar beets from industrial crops to fodder crops.

Features of crop rotation

When planning a crop rotation, it should be borne in mind that the interval for replanting sugar beets for the same crop should be at least 4 years. Good predecessors for the cultivation of sugar beet are winter cereals, legumes, primarily due to the early timing of their harvest, which makes it possible to carry out a whole range of necessary agricultural activities to obtain a high yield of this industrial crop.

In the fall, it is necessary to deep plow the field to a depth of 30 cm; if necessary, additionally perform liming to combat increased soil acidity. The amount of lime depends on the structure of the soil and ranges from 3500 kg per hectare on medium loam and up to 6000 kg on heavy clay soils.

Sowing seeds

After spring harrowing, the soil must be fed with the introduction of basic fertilizers, the amount of which depends on the type of soil. So, for lands with a high humus content, it is enough to apply 30 kg of nitrogen fertilizers per hectare of land; depleted soils will require double fertilizer consumption: the amount of phosphorus varies from 30 to 90 kg per hectare, potash fertilizers are applied at the rate of 45-60 kg per hectare.

The optimal time for sowing sugar beet depends on the region, for example, in the Krasnodar Territory, it can be sown in the second half of April, after the ground warms up to 6-8 ° C; the sowing depth is rather shallow - from 3 to 4 cm. After sowing, it is necessary to harrow and roll the top layer of soil with rolls. The consumption of seeds is 1.1-1.2 million pieces per 1 hectare of land, the row spacing ranges from 45 to 60 cm.

7 days after sowing the seeds, the soil is re-harrowed across the laid rows. With normal germination of seeds and observance of the sowing time, friendly shoots appear already 2 weeks after the sowing, after which they carry out repeated transverse harrowing of the field.

Crop care

After the formation of the first pair of leaves, a breakthrough should be made, leaving no more than 5 plants per running meter of arable land, this will allow the plants to form full-fledged tubers weighing up to 200-300 g.

The breakthrough ends with shallow loosening of the soil to a depth of 8 cm; shallow re-cultivation should be carried out each time weeds appear. When growing sugar beets, it should be remembered that excess moisture in the soil adversely affects the sugar content in the tuber, therefore, in rainy weather, the soil is loosened deeper - up to 12 cm.

To combat weeds, it is required to carry out post-sowing treatment of the field with herbicides in a timely manner; when plants are inhibited, it is necessary to provide measures for foliar feeding with growth stimulants. If it is necessary to combat pests, a system of protective measures is practiced.

Harvesting of this crop is carried out depending on the region from the end of September to the beginning of October; in this case, the choice of its timing depends on the number of clear days for the maximum accumulation of sugar in the tuber. For harvesting, a special beet-harvesting technique is used, after which the green above-ground part of the plants is cut, the amount of which, when delivered to processing plants, should not exceed 3%.

Modern types of sugar beets are the fruit of the work of American breeders. In 1747, scientists from America found that white beets contain the same amount of sugar as sugar cane - 1.3%. Now technical hybrid varieties, bred by breeders specifically for the production of sugar, contain more than 20% of a natural substance. Despite the fact that this is a technical culture, people have adapted to use it as food, as a folk remedy, and as feed for livestock.

Characteristics of sugar beet

White sugar beet is a vegetable, a two-year-old root vegetable, a kind of common red. In the first year, it forms a large, oblong, dense, fleshy root crop and a powerful rosette of large leaves in the ground part.

This is the most important sugar crop that grows on a huge area of ​​cultivated land. Sucrose levels range from 8-10 to 20% and directly depends on the climatic conditions of the growing region, agrotechnical conditions, since the culture requires a lot of heat, moisture, sunlight.

Especially a lot of solar heat is needed for a vegetable during the ripening period of the root crop - from August to the end of October... It is during this period that sugar accumulates in it.

Sugar beet is 100% productive. The waste left over from sugar production is processed, used in industry and is of great importance.

Beet pulp

Production waste is used to obtain:

• pulp - waste in the form of beet cut, used as feed for cattle, pigs;
• syrup - used in the food industry for the production of yeast, citric acid, glycerin, organic acids and alcohol;
• defect (or defecation mud) - lime fertilizer for plants.

In addition, sugar vegetables are used to produce ethanolrequired in gasoline production technology.

Growth history

The production of sugar from beets began in the 19th century in central Europe (New Silesia), where the plant is located, and quickly spread. In the first half of the 19th century, beets began to be planted and grown already in the territory of modern Russia and Ukraine.

The presence of fertile chernozem soils and warm climate defines the zones of cultivation of crops: Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, the black earth regions of the south of Russia, as well as the countries of southern and central Europe.

Sugar beets are cultivated on fertile and black earth soils in warm climates

For 2014, the leaders in the cultivation of crops and the production of sugar from it are:

• France - about 40 million tons;
• Russia - slightly over 30 million tons;
• Germany - 30 million tons;
• USA - 28.5 million tons;
• Ukraine - 16 million tons;
• Poland - 14 million tons.

In total, about 280 million tons of beets are grown in the world.

Food or livestock feed

Of course, first of all, this culture is technical, but root crops are good fodder base for pig and cattle breeding.

Leaf and rhizomes have almost the same nutritional value: 100 kg of beets contains 25 feed units (it is considered that 1 feed unit is equivalent to 1 kg of oats in nutritional value) and 1.2 kg of useful protein, and 100 kg of green tops contains 22 feed units and 2.2 kg of protein ...

At the same time, by the time of harvest weight of leaves and roots approximately 1: 2... The proportion of foliage can be from 40 to 60% of the weight of the vegetable.

The ratio of the mass of tops and root crops is approximately 1 to 2

But besides this, sugar beets are often used in dietary nutrition and in traditional medicine... The plant has a rich vitamin and mineral composition: iodine, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, iron, calcium, vitamins B, PP, C, betadine, pectins.

This product helps to increase immunity, hemoglobin, has a beneficial effect on the work of the cardiovascular system, improves the functioning of the digestive system, removes toxic substances from the body.

Vegetable has contraindications for use in kidney disease, diabetes, obesity due to the high content of sucrose.

Features of cultivation and cultivation conditions in Russia

Growing and planting sugar beets is a very laborious process that requires strict adherence to all terms and agricultural techniques.

Crop rotation and growing beet-friendly predecessors - legumes, winter grain crops - are of great importance.

Sowing technology

The soil is plowed in the fall, to a depth of 30 cm, after applying a full range of fertilizers. In the spring, before sowing, the soil is harrowed, cultivated and leveled.

Sugar beet seeds

Sow seeds at air temperature 8-10 degrees Celsius to the depth 5 cm... 5 days after sowing, pre-emergence harrowing is carried out in order to destroy weeds, loosen the soil.

Seedlings appear as early as 8-10 days after sowing. The first loosening of the soil is carried out after the appearance of the first true leaves to a depth of 5-7 cm.

Next step - thinning of seedlings (bouquet). This is the most difficult, laborious, but important process, after which the strongest and strongest beets remain on the field.

Subsequent care of the crop consists in loosening the soil between the rows and abundant watering up to 4-5 times a month... Watering is stopped in the second half of September, 7-10 days before the start of the harvest.

Harvesting

Harvesting of sugar beet takes place from late September to mid-October

In different regions, harvesting begins at different times, from around the end of September to mid-October.

Green leaves are not able to persist for a long time, therefore the harvested crop immediately sent to processing plants... There, the process of obtaining sugar from the rhizomes is started, and the tops are processed into feed.

It is obvious that the whole cycle of growing and processing a vegetable is quite laborious and costly. Even though the productivity of this crop is 100%, it is quite difficult for producers to achieve good profitability from both crops and processing plants.

Nevertheless, sugar remains a very popular everyday food product, and its production is a completely justified and unconditional necessity.