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Sugar Beet: Part 2 - Harvesting

1946 , East Anglia (Other)

Cat no. 36

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An Information film about harvesting sugar beet by hand and by machine, 1942

The film opens with shots of the field man of the sugar factory lifting a sample of sugar beet by hand to take back to the factory to analyse for ripeness; the only way to tell how ripe a sugar beet is. The film continues to show the farmers at work in the tasks connected with harvesting sugar beet. The machinery in use at this time, the beet plough or side lifter is shown in operation. Machinery could only loosen the sugar beet; it had to be left to wilt for a few days (to make it easier to handle) and lifted by hand. Farm workers are shown knocking, topping and piling. Knocking to remove the soil, topping with a knife and then piling ready for loading into a cart. The film gives illustrated instructions on how to carry out these tasks most effectively. It also shows the transition of English farming from a labour intensive, manual operation to mechanisation. In some sequences tractors can be seen at work. In others, sugar beets are still being loaded onto a horse and cart. Also in this sequence are visible a metalled road (with white lines) and a telegraph pole.The film moves on to show the factory process. The interior scenes from the factory show the chemical processes that the sugar beet underwent and the machinery in use.The waste products were returned to the farmer who was encouraged to used them as cattle feed. The tops could also be used for feed or as manure.

Keywords

Agriculture; Sugar Beet; Farming; Harvesting

Intertitles

The bulk of the sugar beet grown in this country comes from the average farm on which about 8 acres of sugar beet are grown each year.This film deals with the Harvesting of Sugar Beet on such farms. The methods and implements used by the growers of large acreages are not shown.

Background Information

The German U-boat campaign during the second world war disrupted the supply of sugar cane from the West Indies increasing the importance of Sugar Beet as an agricultural crop. Processing sugar from the Beet was a process that used comparatively new technology. The film highlights the importance of growing and harvesting this relatively new crop.

Manifestations

Sugar Beet: Part 2 - Harvesting

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