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Show Sugar Beet Contract . For 1948 Approved The 19 18 sugar Leet contract was approved at a meeting meet-ing of representatives of tlie Utah Sugar Beet Growers Association As-sociation and tlie Utah-Idaho Sugar Co., which was concluded con-cluded last Saturday, according to-$ H. J. Sanders, district manager of the sugar company. Essential features of the contract con-tract include an increase in the scale of prices on which sugar beets will be paid for on all levels of net returns of sugar from $5.50 per 100 lbs. up, with the same scale in effect as in the 1947 contract con-tract if the net return for sugar equals $5.25 per 100 lbs. or lower. .Mr. Sunders points out that the 1918 contract gives the grower the liighi'st participation in the returns re-turns from sugar the company has ever offered. In addition to these direct payments from the sugar company, "tlie usual government benefit payments at the rate of approximately $2.50 a ton for beets of 16.2 sucrose content will be paid. Government benefit payments pay-ments are a basic part of the Sugar Act of 1948, and will be paid tliis year and each year until December De-cember 31, 1953. If sugar continues to sell at this present wholesale price and the sugar content of 1948 beets equals the 10-year average of 15.5, beet growers of this district will receive re-ceive approximately $12.50 a ton for their 1948 beets, of which approximately ap-proximately $10.90 per ton will come directly from the company and approximately $2.41 per ton will be in the form of government benefit payments. While no one can say for certain that sugar and sugar beets will bring the prices indicated in the above example, one of the chief aims of the 1948 Sugar Act is to empower and obligate the Secre- ; tary of Agriculture to stabilize sugar (and beets) "at prices which will not be excessive to consumers and which will fairly and equitably maintain and protect the welfare of the domestic sugar industry," Mr. Sanders pointed out. "With this power and duty facing fac-ing him," Mr. Sanders continued, "the Secretary of Agriculture will, we believe, act when necessary to maintain the price of sugar somewhere some-where near its present level. If he does this, it will automatically assure to beet growers prices near the $12.50 mark, providing the sugar content equals the average of the past 10 years." j Under the 1948 contract, an adequate ade-quate supply of field labor is assured as-sured by an arrangement through which the growers' association and the sugar company will both participate par-ticipate in the cost, with specified benefits accruing to growers who follow certain mechanization practices. prac-tices. Contracts are already in the field, but owing to the lateness of the season, growers are urged to co-operate with the company by going to the sugar company office or by contacting a company field-man field-man as soon as posible. Continued emphasis on the Importance Im-portance of maintaining a satisfactory satisfac-tory production history for each district and each individual grower by planting a normal or greater than normal acreage this year to assure favorable acreage allotments allot-ments at some near future date was stressed by both company and grower representatives, Mr. Sanders San-ders reported. "For 1948 there is not acreage allotment, and each grower is permitted per-mitted to plant as many acres of sugar beets as he wishes. However, How-ever, the acreage he plants in 1948 will help determine his acreage in future years. If farmers do not plant a satisfactory acreage in 1948, the advantages of the Sugar Act may be minimized or even lost to them when acreage allotments are re-established. Many authorities, authori-ties, including certain government officials, have indicated this might well occur in 1949. |