Common sense move in waste rules for sugar beet

Farmers struggling with sugar beet that is unfit for harvest have been reassured that they don’t need to register with the Environment Agency before ploughing the crop back into the field to provide nutrient benefit to the soil.

The news has been welcomed by the NFU today after working with the Agency to provide solutions for growers facing a ruined crop. Other non-waste options for rejected sugar beet include finding alternative markets through NFU fodder bank, and use as animal feed.

NFU sugar board chairman William Martin said: "NFU and the Environment Agency have worked together to clarify the situation to help growers in these difficult times and we are pleased that common sense has prevailed.

"We were concerned that growers might not be able to meet some of the waste exemption rules, for example the limit for spreading plant matter in the U13 exemption is usually 50 tonnes per hectare. However, in these exceptional circumstances the Environment Agency has agreed to temporarily lift the limit to 70 tonnes per hectare."

NFU waste spokesman Robert Caudwell said: "This clarifies the immediate position for un-harvested sugar beet but the implications of the Environment Agency statement are much broader than that. Ploughing back un-harvested crop is standard agricultural practice and should not be regulated as a waste activity. We are pleased that the Agency has taken this view and we will continue to work together to ensure the position is understood by growers.

"However, there are some circumstances when waste rules would apply. These include ploughing back in when beet has already been harvested, when it is used as a feedstock for composting or anaerobic digestion plants, and when composting on-farm."