THE 1948/49 SUGAR CAMPAIGN IN SOVIET ZONE GERMANY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600310093-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 12, 2011
• Sequence Number: 93
• Publication Date: May 18, 1950
• Content Type: REPORT

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/08/17: CIA-RDP80-00809A000600310093-4
CLASSIFICATION OONFIDENTIAI;L~~~Ip~NTIA!
INFORMATION FROM
FOREIGN DOCUMEN'T'S OR RADIO [3ROADCASTS CD NO.
COUNTRY
SUBJECT
HOW
PUBLISHED
WHERE
PUBLISHED
DATE
PUBLISHED
LANGUAGE
Economic -Agriculture, sugar
Semimonthly periodical
Berlin
Mar 1949
TNI] OOCUY[XT CONTAINS IN TORY ATION A!lFCTIHO TNF HA IIONAL DCIE H][
OI THE UFIIF[ ]tA IF] WITHIN TNT Y[A NIHO OI []PIO NAOE ACT ]0
U. B C.. ]1 AHD ]!. A] ANENpEO ITS TRAN]YI]SION OR iHF REVELATION
O! Il] CONfE HT] IH AHY YANN[R TO AN UNAUTHO RI[FD PE R]OH I] PRO
NI SITED Bi LAW R[PROOV CTIOH 0! THI] fOHY IS PROM EI iED
SOURCE Die Wirtschaft, No 6, 1949.
DATE DISI'. /g May 1950
N0. OF PAGES 3
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT N0.
THIS IS UNE':ALUAIED INFORMATIOJJ
THE 194849 SUGAR CAMPAIGN IN SOVIET ZONE GERMANY
For the first time since the end of the war, Germany's sugar production
has exceeded ore million tons. The sugar campaign in the Eastern Zone was
the most successful since the war. The daily volume of processing was in-
creased, thus shortening the total processing time considerably. The yearly
production quota assigned to the laender was reached ahesd of the deadline
in a number of instances, Losses were reduced and yields increased. The
amount of white sugar produced. was 20 percent above the planned quantity of
510,000 tons.
Approximately 4.3 million tons of sugar beets were processed in 46 crude-
sugar refineries and 23 white-sugar refineries Three shifts were run over
a period of 65 days, employing 35,000 persons.
The sugar-beet cultivation area in the Eastern Zone was set at 199,800
hectares (196,000 hectares in 191+7-48) by the plan, and 99.8 percent of this
area was actually cultivated. The good weather permitted normal harvests of
30 tons of beets per hectare in many areas, although yields in Mecklenburg
and Brandenburg were poor. Only seven of 21 kreise in Mecklenburg fulfilled
their quota. The kreise which made the poorest showing were Neustrelitz,
Rostock, and Neubrandenburg; those which had the best yields were Parchim,
Hagenow, and Ludwigslust. In Brandenburg, only 11 of the 31 kreise fulfilled
their quota, with Templin, Calau, Angermuende, and Prenzlau the lowest, while
Ostprignitz, Westhavelland, Westprignitz, and Forst all aurpassP~ their quotas.
The sugar content of the beets varied, depending on the soil,.the cli-
mate, and the care given the crops. Mecklenburg had the lowest average sugar
content, 16.37 percent; Sachsen-Anhalt, with 17.87 percent, had the highest.
!iTATE
ARMY
CONFIDENTIAL
DISTRIBUTION
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CONFIDENTIAL - r --~ ._ . 1.~ q
. 1 . ~ ",
This brings up the question as to wnether sugar beet cultivation in Meck-
lenburg should be expanded, or whether it would be more advantageous to con-
centrate on the laender where conditions are more favorable for higher yields.
The ratio of ::he area under sugar-beet cultivation to the entire culti-
vated area is as follows:
Transport of
35 Percent of the
cent in December.
follows:
beets to the mills was carried out according to plan, with
crop shipped in October, 45 percent in November, and 20 per-
A total of 8 million tons of transport space was required as
Percent
Horse-drawn vehicles
49
Trucks
X5,6
Narrow-gauge
railroad
3.4
Reichsbahn
28?g
Ships
3.2
The losses caused by plant diseases and vermin are estimated at 120,000
The processing mills were better supplied with auxiliary materials, espe-
cially bituminous coal and coke, than in the previous year, although no ship-
ments arrived from the Western Zones.
The beets were in good condition for processing, and the quality of the
sugar produced was better than in the previous year. The weather was good and
losses due to frost were slight. The average sugar content of the beets was
17.36 percent (17.19 percent the previous year).
The introduction of a bonus system had a favorable effect, increasing the
quantity of beets processed daily and decreasing sugar losses. Since not all
mills were informed, '.n time, of the introduction of the bonus sys+.em, further
improvements can be expected in the coming year.
The sugar campaign has taught the following lessons: Planting is fre-
quently done too late, so that dry spells prevent the beets from growing prop-
erly. Systematic campaigns against vermin must be carried out. The dates set
for starting to harvest the beets must be made more elastic, and should depend
on the degree of ripeness of the beets and on the status of the potato crop.
The processing and the chemical treatment require further improvement.
C OivT' IDnir'TIAL ~.. ~ 1 ~" ~ Imo. C"1~ ~' ~ ~
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?r'~~:Y aJ ~.?i..ll
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For better control and planning, most of the sugar mills will be con-
solidated into a Zonal Federation of People-Owned Mills, with Headquarters at
Halle. This will enable the mills to coordinate their efforts in solving
their problems. Great efforts will have to be made to effect the necessary
repairs and to increase the yields per hectare. Also, raw material supplies
will have to be increased and the overhead should be lowered by 7 percent.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/08/17: CIA-RDP80-00809A000600310093-4