For sugarbeet growers, the past year has been less than sweet. From global economic pressures to changing consumer preferences, the sugar market is facing significant uncertainty, with refined sugarbeet prices down over 30% from a year ago. 

Those challenging conditions are being felt strongly in the Red River Valley of Minnesota and North Dakota, one of the nation’s largest sugarbeet-producing areas. With rich soil and a climate well-suited for growing and storing the crop, the region is home to nearly 3,500 sugarbeet farms accounting for 60% of all production in the U.S., according to the Minnesota Farm Bureau. 

Altogether, the sugarbeet industry contributes $6.1 billion to Minnesota and North Dakota each year, directly employs 4,400 people, and supports another 16,400 through secondary jobs. 

With sugarbeets representing a meaningful part of the region’s economy, we reached out to Harrison Weber, executive director of the Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association (RRVSGA), to learn more about the sugar market. The RRVSGA represents the growers for American Crystal Sugar Company, one of three farmer-owned cooperatives in the region, and lobbies and advocates on behalf of sugarbeet growers on local, state and federal issues. 

We asked Harrison to break down what he’s seeing in the market today. 

What’s causing the recent uncertainty in the sugar market today? 

Ultimately, it’s a supply and demand issue. Sugar is different from other commodities in the U.S. in that we’re net importers, not exporters. We typically produce about 75% of our domestic needs and import the rest based on consumption and demand forecasts. But lately, there’s been an excess supply of sugar on the global market, and some countries have taken advantage of opportunities to sell their surplus subsidized sugar into the U.S. at prices below the cost of production. 

On top of that, demand for sugar in the U.S. is down by between 3% and 4%, according to our estimates, which is a substantial amount. 

When excess supply and low demand converge, it puts downward pressure on the domestic market, and as a result we’ve seen sugar prices collapse over the last 16 months. 

Why is demand for sugar decreasing? 

There are a number of factors, all contributing in different ways. Food costs, to some extent, are playing a role in reduced demand. People are feeling economic pressures at home, and that’s affecting what they spend money on. 

Another factor is changing consumer habits and an increase in the use of GLP-1 drugs (for weight loss). People are eating fewer calories and just eating less in general. 

The Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement has put more emphasis on eating naturally and getting back to the basics and clean labels, and that’s been a part of the change in demand. But when it comes to the MAHA movement, we have a great story to share. We fit right in with that exact thinking and believe that all-natural real sugar can play a functional role in a well-balanced diet. 

If you take sugar out of something, you have to put two or more ingredients back in to provide the same technical qualities, and often those ingredients aren’t natural and are difficult to pronounce. But sugar is natural, sugar comes from a plant. It’s not made in a lab – it’s grown by family farmers in the U.S. 

Where does the sugar market go from here? 

At the RRVSGA, we’re focused on what we can do to support sugarbeet growers who are being affected by the uncertainty and low prices right now. We worked with our congressional champions to improve the loan rates of the USDA sugar program, which is a short-term, post-harvest financing option for producers until their crop can be processed. These were the most significant improvements made to the policy in 40 years. 

The U.S. government also recently renewed a suspension agreement that prevents Mexico from exporting excess amounts of subsidized sugar to the U.S. market and putting domestic production out of business. 

We have a great team at the RRVSGA, starting with our farmer-grower leaders, and I know we’ll come out of this OK. We have to ride the waves as they come and go, but I’m confident that sugar will continue being there for the long haul.

Harrison Weber is the fifth generation on his family’s farm near Chaffee, N.D. He graduated from Valley City State University in Valley City, N.D., and earned a Juris Doctor at the University of North Dakota. Prior to joining the RRVSGA, he clerked in the North Dakota Senate Ag Committee in Bismarck, and worked for the soybean checkoff and growers’ association in both Minnesota and North Dakota. He and his wife, Emma, have two children, Freya and Haakon.

This article appeared in the Q4 2025 issue of our AgViews newsletter.