Welcome to the deep dive.

Today, we're heading out, metaphorically speaking, into England's sugar beet fields.

We're looking at the 2025 growing season.

Yeah.

It's shaping up to be quite a year.

We've got some, key intelligence, you could say.

Yeah.

Think of it as your briefing on how growers are handling a pretty complex situation.

We've got tricky weather, new pest issues, changing regulations.

That's right.

We've been looking through reports like managing twenty twenty five English sugar beet yield risks and another on UK Sugar Beet Production Challenges and Solutions.

So our mission today is really to understand these risks and maybe more importantly what strategies growers actually have available.

Exactly.

Because it is dynamic.

You've got that mild winter carryover effect, the sort of erratic spring we had, a dry start to summer potentially, and all this under tighter pesticide rules.

It's a lot to juggle.

Okay.

Let's try and unpack that.

What are the absolute biggest threats growers are, really focusing on for 2025?

Well, top of the list, no question, is still virus yellows.

That remains the big one.

Still number one.

Yep.

Then you've got Circus bora leaf spot, which is definitely, becoming more prominent.

Beet moth is a newer but significant worry.

And the old foes, like beet cyst nematode, are still there in places.

Right.

And then wrapping around all that is water.

Too little, you know, drought or too much flooding.

Plus, you always have that late season risk of frost.

It really does sound like a high stakes season, but the reports also mentioned some good news.

Progress in research, new tactic.

Oh, absolutely.

It's not all doom and gloom.

The BBRO, the British Beat Research Organization Yeah.

Is doing vital work providing guidance.

We're seeing better varieties coming through, more resilient ones.

And there's a huge focus now on kind of smarter timing.

Mhmm.

Making sure you do the right thing at exactly the right time.

So there's a playbook, even if the game is tough.

That's a good way to put it.

A clearer playbook than maybe they've had before for some of these challenges.

Excellent.

Let's dive into that playbook then, starting with, as you said, the heavyweight virus yellows, the potential damage sounds, well, huge.

It really is.

You're looking at yield hits of 50, maybe even up to 80% if it really gets out of control.

That's massive.

Wow.

And the big shift for 2025, the real game changer is losing the emergency use approval for cruiser SB that neonic seed treatment growers had relied on.

It's gone for this

season, right?

That's a major tool removed from the toolbox.

So how do you defend against virus yellows without that seed treatment?

Okay, so the core strategy now revolves around what's being called the three spray aphid tool kit.

Three sprays?

Yes, using three different insecticides flonicamide, fluporadifurone and acetaminophen.

But here's the crucial part, you can only use each one once per crop.

Only once?

That really changes things.

It does.

It puts huge emphasis on getting the timing right based on proper monitoring.

No just spraying preventatively across the board.

Which is where the BBRO's aphid wash thresholds come in I assume.

Exactly.

They're absolutely critical now.

The guideline is, one green wingless aphid per four plants up until the beet has 12 leaves.

Then from 12 to 16 leaves that threshold tightens.

It becomes one aphid per plant.

So you need to be scouting carefully.

Makes sense.

And what about the beet varieties?

I saw mention of partially tolerant ones.

How much help are they?

They're definitely part of the picture.

We've got varieties like Generosa, Tweed, and Maruchia available now.

The newer ones Generosa and Tweed are interesting because they seem to have better yield potential overall compared to say Marucha.

So less of a yield drag if the virus pressure isn't actually that high.

Precisely.

With Marucha, the thinking was you needed quite infection levels, like over sixty percent, for its tolerance to really pay off because its baseline yield was lower.

These newer ones narrow that gap.

That's a significant improvement.

Are there other sort of non chemical things growers can do?

Cultural controls?

Yes, and they're important.

Cleaning up volunteer beet plants and weeds that can host a virus that's basic but essential.

Good crop rotation too, you know, not growing beet too often in the same field, ideally one year in the three or four.

Standard practice, but maybe more important now.

Definitely.

And there's some interesting experimental stuff happening too.

Things like companion planting or products like Agriador, which might help deter aphids early days, but promising areas of research.

Worth keeping an eye on.

Okay, back to that three spray toolkit.

Can we break down those insecticides?

How should growers think about using them, given the one spray limit for each?

Right.

So first up, you've often got flonicamide brands like Tepecchi or Aphinto.

It's an anti feedin.

Stops them feeding.

Yeah, stops the aphids feeding so stops them transmitting the virus.

It's a bit slower to act but it's generally seen as being kinder to beneficial insects.

So it often makes sense as the first spray once you hit that threshold.

Okay.

A targeted start then what's typically next?

Often the second option might be Acetamaprit sold as in cyst for example.

Now this is a neonicotinoid.

Works by contact and ingestion, gives you a faster knockdown.

Quick kill!

Quick or kill, yes, but it's broader spectrum so potentially harder on beneficials.

And importantly, the label restricts its use.

You can only apply it up to the 16 leaf stage of the beat.

Got it.

And the new one for 2025, Flupi ratifuron.

Yes, Savanto Prime.

It's a beet nullite insecticide.

It's got systemic and contact activity, brand new chemistry for beet growers this year, which is good from a resistance management perspective it's in a different IRS four d.

So it helps mix things up.

Exactly.

The key thing with Savanto Prime though is application timing.

The advice is to use it early, no later than the nine leaf stage.

So the sequence and the timing for each spray are just critical.

And you've gotta rotate them?

Absolutely critical.

Rotate the chemistry as the BBRO advises to stop resistance building up, and the message is clear.

When AFID Watch says you've hit the threshold, you spray.

Delaying, especially with young plants, lets the virus spread fast.

What's the general feeling about virus levels for 2025?

Is there a forecast?

Well, interestingly, the Rotham said forecast suggests, maybe a lower initial aphid migration.

They're estimate something like seventeen percent virus incidents nationally if crops were left untreated.

That sounds it does.

But the big caveat is a warm spring.

If we get that, aphid numbers could explode quickly.

So growers can't relax based on that forecast alone.

Vigilance is still key.

And later infections aren't as bad yield wise?

Generally, no.

Infections later in the season tend to have much less impact on the final yield compared to when the plants are young and vulnerable.

Okay.

And longer term research is looking beyond sprays, gene editing, other things.

Oh, definitely.

There's active work on gene edited varieties with built in virus resistance and exploring more integrated pest management biological options.

But for 2025, it's really about using this current toolkit effectively.

Right.

Let's shift then.

Circus bora leaf spot.

You said that's on the rise.

It is.

Yes.

Yeah.

Seems linked to the warmer, wetter summers we've been experiencing more often.

Creates ideal conditions for the fungus.

But I saw some really positive news here.

A new resistant variety.

Yes.

This is quite a big deal.

Chima KWS is the first UK variety with specific circus borer resistance what they call CR plus mint.

And the trials look good.

Extremely good.

In trials even without fungicides it yielded 103% of the control variety.

That shows you how clean it stays.

And even with fungicides, it's still competitive on yield and gets good sugar content around 16.6%.

It's a potential game changer for managing Circus spray.

Sounds like it.

Less reliance on chemicals perhaps, but fungicides are still important.

Oh, for sure.

A standard approach is still a two spray fungicide program.

Often using something powerful like Revistar XE or maybe Caligula later on.

Good programs can basically have the disease pressure, keep that canopy green much longer into the autumn.

Which is crucial for yield.

Crucial for packing in the sugar.

And like with virus yellows, there are cultural practices too.

What helps with Circus burrow?

Again, long rotations, three or four years, plowing down the beet residues after harvest to bury the fungal spores, getting rid of volunteer beet and, trying to minimize how long the leaves stay wet.

So maybe avoiding very late irrigation.

And there's monitoring for this too.

SporeNet.

Yes, the BBRO SporeNet.

It tracks airborne circus bore spores regionally giving growers an early warning if the risk is building in their area.

Very useful.

So resistant varieties plus fungicides plus cultural controls, a multi pronged attack.

Let's talk fungicides.

Revistar XE seems popular.

It is.

It's got two strong active ingredients: mefenterfluconazole which is a newer type of triazole and fluxoporoxad an SDHI fungicide Yeah, targets a specific enzyme in the fungus.

Rivistar gives broad spectrum control preventative and some curative action.

You can use it twice, got a twenty eight day harvest interval.

Trials show it's very effective, often boosting profitability compared to other options.

Sounds potent.

What else is used?

Well, the first spray, often around July time, you might see products like Priori Gold or Esculta.

They're good on rust and mildew, give some circus pore suppression.

And for the second spray?

You could use Revistar XE again if you didn't use it first.

Or another option is Caligula.

Its label means you generally use it later after September 1.

It has a shorter pre harvest interval sometimes.

And getting the spray on properly is key I imagine.

Coverage?

Absolutely vital.

You need good coverage, high water volumes, right nozzles to get down into the canopy And with fungicides prevention is always better than cure spraying based on risk before the disease really takes hold is far more effective.

And we need to be mindful of resistance here too.

We do.

The UK doesn't have a huge range of effective modes of action for circus bra.

So rotating products and using them judiciously is really important.

Research is ongoing into resistance patterns.

Okay, let's move to a slightly newer pest problem.

Beet moth.

That 2022 heat wave really put it on the map.

It absolutely did.

It was around before, but those conditions in 2022, especially in East Anglia, led to a major outbreak, made everyone sit up and take notice.

What damage did the larvae actually do?

They're the problem stage.

They bore right into the leaves and crucially into the crown of the beet.

Inside the plant.

Exactly.

That causes blackened centers, loss of new leaves.

Sometimes the plant tries to regrow with multiple crowns, gets distorted, and those entry points can let in rots.

Speaker Sounds nasty.

What does that do to yield?

Speaker In the worst hit fields back in '22, people were talking about 10, even 20% yield loss in patches, plus potential quality issues from the damage and rot.

How are growers tracking it?

Pheromone traps.

Yes, that's the main tool.

Pheromone traps monitor the adult moth flights, gives you an idea of when they're active and how numerous they are.

Is there any natural control?

I saw irrigation mentioned.

Yeah, it's an interesting one.

Overhead irrigation or just heavy rain can actually suppress the larvae.

Seems to drown them.

Not something you can rely on, but it can help.

Okay, what about spraying?

Do standard insecticides work?

Well that's the problem.

Conventional pyrethroids often don't work that well because the larvae are tucked away inside the plant tissue, contact sprays struggle to reach them effectively.

Very.

If you are going to spray the advice is aim for the very young larvae when they might be more exposed.

Use high water rates, maybe a wetting agent, try and get penetration.

Any other tactics?

Early harvest of hot spots is one recommendation just to limit further damage and plowing down the crowns and tops after harvest helps reduce overwintering numbers.

Research is looking for better, more targeted controls, maybe biologicals.

And keeping the plant healthy helps it cope.

Yeah.

Good fungicide use, good nutrition.

A healthy plant can tolerate a bit more stress from something like beet moth.

Right.

Okay.

Let's touch on an old enemy, especially in certain soils.

Beet cyst nematode sounds like it can be really damaging.

Oh, it can be devastating On those susceptible sandy soils, if you've got an infestation, you could lose anywhere from 15% up to, well, potentially 60% of your yield.

60%.

That's huge.

And there aren't chemical controls in The UK?

No, not nematicized for sugar beet.

So management is all about other strategies.

Like what?

Crop rotation is fundamental.

At least one year and four for beet.

Longer is better if BCN is a known issue.

Break the cycle.

Exactly.

Another really good tactic is using a resistant cover crop mustard or oil radish often called a trap crop.

How does that work?

It stimulates the BCN eggs in the soil to hatch but the nematodes can't reproduce on the trap crops roots.

So you trick them into hatching but they die out reduces the population.

Clever and resistant beet

Essential.

As soon as soil tests show BCN levels reaching about two eggs per gram of soil, you really need to switch to tolerant varieties things like Daffner, Lacewing.

And are these tolerant varieties getting better yield wise?

Yes, that's a key point.

Modern tolerant varieties have much better yield potential now even in clean ground compared to older ones.

The yield penalty for choosing tolerance is much smaller.

Makes the decision easier.

Anything else for BCN?

Dr: Good field hygiene.

Cleaning machinery between fields to avoid spreading infested soil.

Controlling host weeds too, like fat hen and Sherlock.

Okay.

So rotation, trap crops, tolerant varieties and hygiene.

Got it.

Now water stress, a double edged sword, drought and flooding.

Exactly.

Drought's becoming, you know, almost a chronic drag on yields, maybe 10% on average.

But in bad years like 2022, it can be 25% or more lost nationally and locally, much worse, even 50%.

Hits tonnage and sugar.

Both reduces root growth.

And then if you get late rain, it can dilute the sugar content that is built up.

What can growers actually do about drought?

Irrigation is limited right?

It is, yeah, not widely available for beet in The UK.

So variety choice becomes important looking for ones with proven drought tolerance or deep rooting in the BBRO trials.

Soil health must play a part too.

Big time.

Building soil, organic matter, reducing compaction, keeping soil covered, anything that helps the soil hold onto moisture for longer, getting the plant population right is also key.

And maybe playing with harvest timing.

Potentially.

Balancing the ideal sowing time against maybe leaving the crop in longer if autumn rains come.

Letting it compensate for earlier stress.

The BBRO also has research focused specifically on drought tolerance traits.

Okay, what about the other extreme?

Too much rain, flooding.

That's bad news too.

If roots are underwater for say more than a week, sugar content plummets and rots can set in very quickly.

Roots need oxygen.

And harvesting becomes a nightmare.

Exactly.

Muddy, difficult conditions.

Yeah.

So the advice is maintain field drains really well.

If possible, pump water off quickly, prioritize harvesting low lying fields or Finland areas known to be at risk.

And flooded beet can't be stored.

No, absolutely not.

If beet has been soaked by floodwater, they need to go straight to the factory.

No clamping.

You need to check flooded roots carefully for softness or any off smells after the water goes down.

Harvest gently, process immediately.

Right.

One more major risk, hard frosts late in the season.

You mentioned 2010, '20 '20 '2 events.

Yes.

A hard frost can make beet unusable very quickly.

Once the root tissue hits about minus three Celsius, it could be ruined in forty eight hours.

Freeze thaw cycles are particularly damaging.

How can you tell if beet is frost damaged?

It might look glassy, translucent.

If you cut it, you might see dark rings inside and often there's a distinct unpleasant smell.

What can growers do to protect the crop?

Keeping a good leaf canopy helps insulate the roots a bit so don't talk too early if frost is forecast.

Stop lifting if a hard freeze hits, wait for a slight thaw before restarting.

And protecting the clamps.

Crucial, insulate clamps well typically with about 30 centimeters of straw and plan ahead schedule fields known to be high risk or frost for harvest before Christmas if possible.

And if frost does hit

assess the damage quickly prioritize getting any affected beet processed as fast as possible to salvage what you can.

It really feels like pulling all this information together, monitoring everything is becoming absolutely essential.

It really is.

Those BBRO services, Aphid Watch, SporeNet for Circuspora, the new beet moth traps, they allow for much more targeted threshold based spraying.

Reports suggest it can cut insecticide and fungicide use by maybe 30%.

That's significant.

It is.

Plus regular soil tests for BCN, tissue tests for nutrients.

It's all about spotting potential problems early before they cause major yield

And you mentioned something interesting earlier stacking traits in varieties.

Yeah, that's about the progress in breeding.

Modern varieties that have tolerance to virus yellows and tolerance to BCN for example.

And they yield well now.

That's the key point.

They now yield much closer to the top conventional varieties, maybe within 5% or so, even when there's no disease pressure.

So you're not taking a big hit just for planting that insurance.

Exactly.

It makes choosing those resilient varieties much more economically viable, even on lower risk land sometimes it reduces the gamble.

That's a really important shift.

So if we pull everything together, what's the bottom line for growers going into 2025?

Is it still possible to get a good crop?

Well despite all these challenges we've talked through, the underlying message from the sources is actually quite positive I think.

Oh!

Yeah, a well managed crop, drilled on time, kept clean from pests up to that crucial 16 leaf stage gets those couple of well timed fungicide sprays harvested before bad frost.

It still has the full potential to hit those target yields, you know 80 tons per hectare, 17% sugar, that sort of level, Even if the weather throws some curveballs.

So the potential is still there, but it requires integrating all these strategies.

Precisely.

It's about being proactive, using the information available, selecting the right tools, whether that's variety trait or a specific spray timing and managing things dynamically throughout the season.

It really hammers home that need to stay informed, use the tools like AFID Watch, adapt to what's happening locally.

Absolutely.

That local knowledge combined with the broader research and monitoring is what will make the difference in navigating 2025 successfully.

This has been a fantastic deep dive.

It's clear growers face a really complex web but there's also a growing toolkit and knowledge base to fight back.

Which leads us to a final thought, maybe something for you, our listener, to ponder.

We see these increasing weather extremes, pests evolving.

How do you think things like gene editing or maybe more advanced biological controls will really change sugar beet farming in the coming years?

What new strategies might become absolutely essential to future proof this crop?

Something to think about long after today's discussion.