Baseline information on agricultural practices in the EU ... - Europabio

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2 Methodology This survey of the practices commonly used in European sugar beet cultivation is based on <strong>information</strong> retrieved from public sites of governments, research institutes, peer-reviewed scientific literature, farmers’ organisations, seed organisations, seed companies and expert opinions provided by EuropaBio member companies. Most of the documents concern recommendations from research institutes and professional organisations. While the practice of an individual farmer will be determined by different factors and may be different from the recommendation, they are valid as reference as they represent an optimal management situation and should lead to implementation of policy decisions. When available, <strong>information</strong> is included on the actual crop management practices as performed by the farmers. Also it is recognised that practices may differ within Members States and where applicable, indications on regional differences have been included. Where available, the <strong>information</strong> was further complemented with a review of policy statements that would indicate the future of agriculture in the EU. The <strong>information</strong> was organised following the sequence of activities that a farmer performs when cultivating a sugar beet crop. Furthermore it was structured on a geographical basis, following the structure implemented in the Regulation on Plant Protection Products 1 . This approach identifies 3 geographical zones as areas where agricultural, plant health and environmental (including climatic) conditions are comparable (see Table 1). Table 1: EU geographic zones (based on the Regulation on Plant Protection Products) Zone Geography Member States A North Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Sweden B Centre Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia and the United Kingdom C South Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain Care was taken to collect <strong>information</strong> on all items, covering all relevant Zones and focusing on the major producers in order to get a representative view on the range of agricultural practices across the EU. 1 Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market and repealing Council Directives 79/117/EEC and 91/414/EEC; OJ 24/11/2009 L 309, p.1-50. Page 4 of 66
3 Sugar beet cultivation in Europe 3.1 Crop description Sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L. ssp. vulgaris var. altissima) is a member of the Chenopodiaceae. It is a biennial plant species grown commercially in a wide variety of temperate climates. Beet is a selfincompatible, wind-pollinated plant that produces large amounts of pollen over a long flowering period (JRC, 2006). In the first year the root is formed weighing about 1 kg in a normal field crop stand containing 15–20% sucrose by weight. In the second year, after vernalisation, nutrients stored in the root are used to build the inflorescence and eventually the seeds. The crop is harvested at the end of the first year of development, before it can flower and produce seeds (JRC, 2006). Sugar beet is sensitive to frost and is poorly competitive in natural or agricultural habitats. In most temperate climates, beets are planted in the spring and harvested in the autumn. Sowing starts in March. Sugar beet requires about 150 to 200 growing days and high light intensities. The crop has a high yield potential and a very good water use efficiency (CIBE-CEFS, 2010; ITB; OECD, 2001). Old varieties had multigerm seeds giving rise to multiple seedlings that had to be thinned, mostly by hand. Today’s cultivars are genetically monogerm and most sugar beet varieties in the most productive growing regions are diploids. Triploids are resulting from a cross between diploid male sterile female plants and tetraploid pollinators and had been used in the past 30 years very frequently. Tetraploid varieties usually are not present in the market. The hybrid system used in the sugar beet varieties is based on a cytoplasmatic male sterility system (CMS). In the early growth stage sugar beet plants are vulnerable to the damping off disease complex (see section 3.3.3) and to competition with weeds (see sections 3.3.1 and 5.2.1). The crown leaves of sugar beet are spirally arranged and form a rosette. Some plants may show stem elongation (bolting) already in the first growing season, especially when exposed to low temperatures (+1 to +4°C) in the 4-5 leaf stage over a period of several weeks. This may be due to the variability in vernalisation requirements (quantitative genetic variation) or to pollination of seed crops induced by pollen from annual wild beets, which can occur in the seed multiplication regions. The harvesting period, known as the 'campaign', starts in most European sugar beet growing regions in September for immediate processing at the sugar factory and lasts until November/December (until the first night frost). Beets are stored on heaps protected from freezing awaiting transport to the sugar factory. Delivery to the factory may continue until the end of the year / beginning of next year. At harvest the crown and leaves are chopped and may be used as fodder or are ploughed back into the soil as a natural fertiliser. By-products of sugar production as pulp, molasses, fibre etc. are used as feed. Beet fibre can also be used for food applications. Biogas is another end-product (CIBE-CEFS, 2010). Molasses are also used for alcohol production (e.g. for beverages) and in other forms of fermentation: for pharmaceuticals such as penicillin production; citric acid and biochemicals (OECD, 2001; CIBE- CEFS, 2010). Also sugar factory waste water may be fermented to biogas. Sugar that is surplus to the needs of the food market is converted to bioethanol in e.g. the United Kingdom (British Sugar), Germany (Nordzucker) and France (Tereos). Wild beets or sea beets (Beta vulgaris L. ssp. maritima) are annuals and are found along the Mediterranean coast and the European Atlantic coasts. Other cultivated forms of Beta vulgaris include fodder beet, table beet (or beetroot or red beet), spinach beet and Swiss chard. Fodder beet (Beta vulgaris L. ssp. vulgaris var. rapacea) resembles sugar beet, but the root is formed primarily by the hypocotyl, whereas the swollen root in the sugar beet originates from the root and hypocotyl (OECD, 2001). A variety needs to contain at least 20% dry matter and to be white to be considered a sugar beet. Fodder beets may appear white, yellow or orange-yellow. Both leaves and roots provide a nutritious food for livestock. These crops are not further described in this report. Page 5 of 66
Page 1 and 2: Baseline i
Page 3: 1 Introduction Under the current Eu
Page 7 and 8: The distribution of sugar beet prod
Page 9 and 10: Table 2: Sugar and fodder beet acre
Page 11 and 12: Zone Member State Beet type 2010 20
Page 13 and 14: Zone Member State Number of holding
Page 15 and 16: Zone Member State Main weed species
Page 17 and 18: Zone Member State Main pest species
Page 19 and 20: Zone Member State Main diseases C S
Page 21 and 22: Figure 4: Distribution of BNYVV (so
Page 23 and 24: cytoplasm. For CMS to be expressed,
Page 25 and 26: Zone Member State Insecticide (% of
Page 27 and 28: On water erosion sensitive soils it
Page 29 and 30: Not only are the requirements of a
Page 31 and 32: Zone Member State Sowing dates Seed
Page 33 and 34: Zone Member State Treated area (% o
Page 35 and 36: Active ingredient HRAC classificati
Page 37 and 38: Zone Member State Insecticides (% o
Page 39 and 40: Zone Member State Fungicides (% of
Page 41 and 42: The Sixth Environment Action Progra
Page 43 and 44: As an example to show the necessity
Page 45 and 46: Zone Member State Region C South To
Page 47 and 48: -: figure not available *: As data
Page 49 and 50: Table 20: Irrigation methods and so
Page 51 and 52: Zone Member Irrigation methods Stat
Page 53 and 54: Irrigation methods Irrigation sourc
Page 55 and 56:
The main overall objective of EU wa
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Zone Member State C South 2010 2009
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7 References The following table pr
Page 61 and 62:
Crop Research Institute http://www.
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Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (LALLF M-V),
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akkerbouw en vollegrondsgroenten. P
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