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America’s sugar beet farmers, long reliant on the robust demand for their crops, are facing an unprecedented crisis as domestic consumption plummets and stockpiles balloon.
For years, these white-fleshed root crops provided over half of the nation’s domestically produced sugar, shielding growers from the volatility of other agricultural markets.
However, this year marks a stark departure. A dramatic decline in US sugar consumption, coupled with excess imports, has led to a significant glut.
Refined beet sugar prices have fallen by 33 per cent from a year ago, reaching their lowest point since 2019, with the oversupply projected to persist until at least 2026.
The downturn is primarily attributed to Americans simply eating less sugar.
While a long-term trend of declining consumption began in the 1990s with the rise of artificial sweeteners, this has recently been exacerbated by inflation, wh
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