Michael Pollitt, agricultural editorBeet growers may receive a lower than expected price for next year's crop as sterling appreciates against the euro, a leading farmer has warned.Fenland grower William Martin, chairman of the National Farmers' Union's sugar board, said that the four-year deal to 2015 has given the industry much needed certainty.Michael Pollitt, agricultural editor

Beet growers may receive a lower than expected price for next year's crop as sterling appreciates against the euro, a leading farmer has warned.

Fenland grower William Martin, chairman of the National Farmers' Union's sugar board, said that the four-year deal to 2015 has given the industry much needed certainty.

A price of between �24 and �25 per tonne for the 2011 beet campaign had been indicated to growers recently, he said. "I have to tell you at the moment that we're right at the bottom end of that range, if not fractionally below that rate. I'm not going hide that from you," said Mr Martin, who shared a platform with British Sugar's managing director, Gino De Jaegher at Cereals 2010.

Mr Martin said that the formal offer, expected later this month, of a fixed sterling price would deliver certainty. "We can then decide as growers whether to grow sugar beet or not. The new IPA (Inter-Professional Agreement) does give us as growers the chance to plan with more confidence for the future."

As British Sugar's business was based on selling into a European market in euros, the beet price had to take account of the processor's returns and profitability.

Mr Martin, said: "In the past we carried the whole risk until the sugar beet were delivered. Now, once we get to the end of June, our price will be fixed in sterling."

In the new grand coalition of mutual interest, Mr De Jaegher, right, said that he had worked hard to secure the IPA and forge a "renewed relation-ship with the grower base."

The four-year deal covered a cost+ pricing mechanism, new transport arrangements and out-goers scheme. The other long running sore, crowning in the tare house had finally been addressed. And Mr De Jaegher said that he understood growers' irritation with the tare issue.

"We believe that that the IPA price mechanism moves all the risk or most of the risk from the grower to the processor. As such we believe that the price mechanism is going to make beet a more profitable broad acre crop than other broadacre crop.

"We also believe that this deal is one of the best deals in Europe's beet growing industry," added Mr De Jaegher.

A transport trial, involving haulage to the world's biggest beet sugar refinery at Wissington and Newark would start next campaign. "It is an absolutely voluntary scheme. The objective is to move the risk of diesel prices from the grower to the processor,"said Mr De Jaegher.

Mr Martin, who farms at Littleport, near Ely, said that the big challenge was to work together as Europe's reform of the Common Agricultural Policy would impact from 2015.

"We have in the UK one of the most efficient industries anywhere in Europe. If we are going to defend that industry and make sure that the reform of the policy in future does not undermine that industry, we need to work together in Brussels and in London and anywhere else to get an outcome which suits our industry. If we spend all our time arguing with each other, people will reform around us and we'll be left stranded."

But Mr Martin said that the new contract price could move up or down each year. "We have got used to the fact that sugar beet prices will not always be the same from year to year but once agreed, nothing will change it."

Mr De Jaegher said that the feasibility study to process part-refined sugar at Cantley had not been completed.

The Wissington's bioethanol plant had been running flat out. "We've had a very good year during the current campaign," he added.