Innovations In Sugar Beet
- Multiple Resistance
- Making The Switch
- Beet Cyst Nematode
- Unbeatable Combination
- Integrated Crop Knowledge
- Biogas From Beet
Biogas From Beet
German farmers feed their national grid with electricity generated from bio-gas. At present there’s a network of over 4000 bio-gas plants in the country, 90% of which are fed mainly by maize.
In recent years though, encouraged by R&D carried out by KWS, some 40 of these farms are testing sugar beet as an alternative.
The current view is that a mix of 70% maize and 30% beet is the most efficient means of fermenting high levels of bio-gas – 20% more methane is produced as a result.
In addition the sugar processor Nordsukker is establishing a pilot plant adjacent to its factory in Hannover.
Trials suggest that you need 25-30% less beet DM than you do with maize to produce the same amount of bio-gas.
KWS is the first company with a breeding programme aiming to produce beet that is better tailored to bio-gas production. It expects to have the first varieties from this work available for next season.
