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For over 100 years, a steadfast commitment to sustainability has inherently protected the people and the land that supply our product. It’s embedded in our business and the very nature of the family farm – a responsibility we have to our neighbors and ourselves.
As the expectations of our business, customers, and communities change, our sustainability stewardship evolves and changes. This is our journey.
We compensate growers for the sugar content of their harvest, rewarding quality over quantity and reducing our environmental footprint.
Compared to 20 years ago, our grower-owned cooperative is producing 39 percent more sugar on 20 percent fewer acres.
More than 20 percent of our workforce is promoted each year, ensuring rewarding careers with a stable, industry leader.
Since 2004, our best-in-class factories have reduced steam usage by 14 percent for every ton of beets sliced.
Five cents per ton harvested is dedicated to community giving, improving the quality of life in our region.
Our grower-owners consistently achieve record harvests, securing the future of their multigenerational family farms. This unwavering success has led our cooperative to center its efforts on sustainable business practices across the organization. As pioneers in sugarbeet production, storage innovation, and remnant reuse, we are deeply committed to minimizing the overall environmental footprint in our factories and communities. Moreover, our groundbreaking grower payment system is a benchmark for sustainability practices.
In the last 20 years, with advanced seed science, we are harvesting record crops on 20 percent fewer planted acres, while reducing nitrogen per ton by 37 percent and phosphorus per ton by 25 percent. Using GPS in our tractors increases accuracy and efficiency in the fields, saving fuel and reducing our impact on the natural environment.
We cut out waste by utilizing the entire sugarbeet for byproducts such as molasses, food for thoroughbred horses, cattle, poultry, and pets, and road de-icers. We produce more than 800,000 tons of byproducts annually.
Devoting significant capital, time, and resources propels us to elevate the operational performance of our factories.
Our dedicated workforce is the backbone of our long-standing success. More than 1,600 employees, 80 percent belonging to the BCTGM Union, process sugarbeets during each campaign. We’re committed to safe work environments and rewarding careers through continuing education and advancement programs. Every year, more than 20 percent of our workforce is promoted and advanced to new positions with higher pay.
We’re committed not only to meeting regulatory requirements but also to actively seeking opportunities to further reduce our footprint. This includes implementing best practices that ensure our products and the materials we use are produced responsibly. Our locations are processing record harvests at higher daily slice rates while decreasing energy demand through improved thermal efficiencies.
We’re proud to contribute to our communities, annually committing five cents per ton harvested to support various regional organizations. Our aid spans rural fire and emergency departments, schools, food pantries, ag education, elderly support, veterans, and local United Way chapters. Other community support includes:
Working toward continued decreases in inputs and increases in energy efficiency, our network of about 100 agronomists, crop advisors, and seed researchers participate in seed trials, industry associations, and summits to gather and share with growers the expert guidance needed for optimal sugarbeet yields and quality.
Keeping 600+ employees active in training programs ensures lifelong careers with advancement opportunities. Tailored career paths are established for many roles, like our process technicians, and we support fully-paid scholarship programs with three community colleges, guaranteeing jobs post-graduation.
Investing in leadership development through programs like our Crystal College, we groom our workforce for leadership roles crucial to continued growth. Our commitment earned us Minnesota Manufacturing Excellence in Training & Education recognition.
Since we first planted the seed of a grower-owned and -operated cooperative, we’ve worked hard to build something that’s pretty sweet: a long-term enterprise that’s sustainable and beneficial – not only for growers, but for employees, customers, and communities.
