Sugar & Oil Crops

1. Sugar & Oil Crops

2. Objectives: • Explain sugar and vegetable oil • Identify major sources of sugar • Describe the production of sugar crops • Describe the production of oil crops

3. Sugar and Oil • Sugars: • Sugar- any food product used as a sweetener • Plants (maple, corn) and animals (lactose or milk sugar) are sources of sugar

4. Vegetable oils: • Type of fat obtained from certain plants

5. Sugar Sources: • Plant sources are the most important • Over half the worlds’ sugar comes from sugar cane 2 forms: • Granulated- crystals of raw sugar or (confectioner’s) finely ground • Liquid-syrup

6. Cane Sugar Mfg: • Crop 7-15 ft. tall • Harvested and sent to refinery • Crushed and squeezed • Blackstrap- the syrup produced during refining • Molasses- brown raw sugar that forms during refining when the blackstrap is removed

7. Beet Sugar Mfg.: • Made from large cone shaped root of the beet • Long tap-root makes the beet good for dry growing areas • Can be stored outdoors for long periods with no loss • Cossetes- the beet slices that are diffused during refining • Beet Pulp- the dried out cossetes that remain after refining often used for cattle feed • Where grown:- Minnesota leads production followed by Idaho, ND, Michigan and California

8. Sugar Crop Production: • Sugar cane production: • Warm tropical climates • Very efficient growth • Has nodes that can sprout new growth • Mature stalks can seed but plants grown for harvest never make it to this stage • Harvested in the fall • Sap- watery juice containing sugar that makes up most of the weight of sugar cane • Ratoon crop- sugar cane produced by sprouting (plants that grow from harvested stubble

9. Sugar Beet Production: • Beets grown for seed are grown for 2 years • Sugar formation increases in late summer as the plants pull more nitrogen from the soil • The harvesting equipment is very unique this equipment cuts, lifts and loads the beets • Beets are hauled to processing facilities or piling stations

10. Sweet Sorghum: • A variety of grain sorghum produced for its “sweet juice” • Can be planted following corn or soybeans • Harvested at mature stage with leaves and seed removed • Stalks are squeezed the juice is cooked and canned for use

11. Vegetable Oil Sources: • Most plants contain small quantities of oil • Cooking oil- plant fat in which foods can be prepared • Mayonnaise, dressing, and shortening • Non-cooking oil- plant fat used in products such as: • Printing ink, soap, leather tanning, fuels

12. Vegetable Oil Sources: • Ethanol- vegetable oil used as a fuel instead of gasoline or a blend of the two • Biodiesel- vegetable oil that has undergone esterification and blended with diesel fuel • Bi-products of vegetable oil production: • Chewing gum, plywood, crayons, plastics, animal feed, and fertilizer

13. Oil Crops: • Soybeans, canola, corn, cottonseed, peanuts, safflower, sesame, flaxseed, Tung seed, rapeseed, mustard, lesquerella, olive, and coconut, spearmint, and peppermint • Various uses on multiple scales (oil and bi-products) • Mfg. of vegetable oils: • Presses and solvents

14. Oil Crop Production: • Types grown: • Soybeans • One of the U.S. leading crops • More grown in the U.S. than the rest of the world combined • 60 million acres per year • 25-60 BPA • Processed for oil and meal • Avg. 11 lbs. of oil, 43 lbs. of meal, 4.2 lbs. of hulls per bushel

15. Planting: • High quality seeds • Seedbed: land needs to be leveled be loose at the surface but tight below to hold water, terraces may also be necessary to slow water and avoid erosion • Seeding: soybeans are drilled to 1.5 – 2 in deep

16. Fertilization: • Good bean yields require fertilizer being a legume nitrogen is not a problem as long as the seeds are inoculated at planting • Inoculating-mixing nitrogen fixing rhizobia bacteria with the seeds • Soil test should be taken to determine the need for soil amendments

17. Pest management: • IPM should be used to control pests • Common pests include: insects, weeds, and diseases • Can be somewhat controlled by planting resistant varieties • Cultural practices can be used to avoid certain pest

18. Harvesting: • Combining after plant matures about 14% moisture • Pre-harvest loss- loss that occurs before the combine hits the field (aka shatter) • Harvest loss- loss caused during the harvest (machinery adjustment)

19. Peanut Production: • Ranks 3rd in worldwide oil crop production • Types grown: • 4 types, runner (peanut butter), Virginia (roasting), Spanish (candy), valencia

20. Varieties: • Varieties should be selected for climate adaptation and yield and must meet market requirements • Vary and should be chosen according to region that best supports their growth and production

21. Harvesting: • harvested when 75% or more of the pods show darkening • uses a digger-shaker-windrower

22. Canola Production: • seeds are 45% oil • planted in the spring or fall • low levels of erucic acid that causes heart disease • ND and MN lead US production • Harvested when seeds brown must be harvested before shatter

23. Sunflower Production: • Tall yellow flowers • Most go to oil production (smaller seed) • some for birdseed, some for human snacks (larger seed) • 3 to 1o ft tall head can produce up to 1,000 seeds • Require less moisture than most crops due to extensive root system • Slower growth over season

24. Safflower Production: • Similar to sunflower • Used to make cooking oil, paint, and varnishes • Cool temp tolerant • Resemble thistles • 30% to 40% oil • Harvested by combine • Shattering is not a problem

25. Summary: • Sugar crops are sources of food and sweeteners such as: • Sugar beets, cane, corn, and maple • Oil crops are used for: • vegetable oils for cooking, food sources, paint, and fuel • Oil crops are: • soybeans, peanuts, cotton seed, corn, canola, sunflowers, and safflowers

26. Summary: • Cultural requirements vary: • Sugar cane likes tropical climate, high moisture • sugar beets like cooler climates with less moisture • Soybeans are the most important oil crop in the U.S • good rotational relationship with corn because it is a legume and can fix nitrogen

27. Summary: • Peanuts and canola are also important oil crops • Sunflowers and safflowers are lesser grown oil crops in the U.S. but have a niche due to their ability to grow in cooler climates with less moisture