The beet campaign is currently in full swing in all beet growing regions in Germany. It is already clear that the extreme heat and the long drought have taken their toll on the beets. The rain came too late for the hoped-for yield growth. While sugar content decreased to 17.7%, beet delivery remained almost the same compared to the second estimate. The expected sugar production must therefore be revised downwards to just under 3.9 million tonnes. Currently, the world market price also supports the EU internal market. The higher revenues are necessary to compensate for additional costs for e.g. fertilizer or energy and to maintain the competitiveness of the sugar industry. In the long run, however, this can only succeed if the energy supply of the factories becomes climate-neutral. To achieve this, beet pulp would have to be included in the directive as a renewable energy source. "We appeal to politicians at federal and EU level to support this amendment to the RED III," comments Günter Tissen, Managing Director of the German Sugar Economic Association.