Objectives of the presentation

• Examine possibility of using cassava and tropical sugarbeet (TSB) as rotational crops so as to optimise cultivation as well as processing costs

• Whereas cassava is commercially cultivated over the past three centuries, TSB is a relatively new crop

• Traditionally sugarbeet is grown in the temperate climates

• The total area under TSB still remains at under 10,000 ha

• Though agronomically TSB seems promising, its processing is difficult as well as expensive

World production

FAOstat

World production of cassava root was estimated to be 184 million tonnes in 2002, the majority of production is in Africa where 99.1 million tonnes were grown, 51.5 million tonnes were grown in Asia and 33.2 million tonnes in Latin America and the Caribbean.

World production

FAOstat , Dilip Gokhale estimate

Traditional sugarbeet areas

v

World production

FAOstat , Dilip Gokhale estimate

Traditional sugarbeet areas

v

TSB trials

15 years of TSB development

Trials commence India

RSA, Kenya, Sudan

Colombia, Peru China, Thailand, Mexico

Peru Colombia

1995 2000 2005

Nanning, ChinaKenya Sudan Brazil

India

15 years of TSB development

Colombia2007

Colombia

Upper Egypt

RSA? Kenya?

Ethiopia?

2007

2007

Mexico?

India2006

Cassava and TSB Cultivation Practices

Cassava • Duration 8 to 10 M

(can be as high as 36M)• 30N to 30S• Rotation crops: Corn,

sorghum, vegetableslegumes, rubber, oil palm,(TSB??)

• Hand cultivation to semi-mechanised

• Relatively easy to cultivate

TSB•Duration 5 to 6 months(10 M in RSA at 30S, 1000 msl)•30N and 30S (Highlands aound equator)•Rotation crops: Corn,sorghum, vegetables (Cassava?)•Hand to fully mechanised

•Not an easy crop to cultivate

Cassava and TSB Cultivation

Cassava• Harvesting round the

year possible (Malaysia)• Water requirement: 600

to 1500 mm over 10M• Yield:18-25 M.T. / ha

(maximum 50 M.T./ha)• Starch content:20-30%• Ethanol:2,700-3,700 l

/ ha in 10 months

TSB•Harvesting between September and April in northern hemisphere•600 mm over six months

•60 – 80 M.T. /ha (maximum 210 M.T. / ha (50 M.T.of white sugar / ha) in 10 months•Sugar content: 14-18%•Ethanol: 4,800 – 10,000 l / ha in six months

Cassava and TSB processing

Cassava• Processing is relatively

easy• Done from small to

very large scale• Is versatile in terms of

form of raw material though dried chips is the most preferrred form

• Long term storage ofchips is possible

TSB•Processing is extremely complex

•The small beet factories have almost disappeared. Typically Capacity of a modern factory is minimum 10,000 MT/day•Has to be processed fresh• Long term storage not possible

Cassava and TSB : Comparative advantages

Time Water Yield Cultivation Processing Flexibility

TSB Cassava

Conclusion

• Cassava & TSB as rotational crops for Cultivation:

- Present date inadequate. Need to conduct

experiments / generate data to determine this

• Whether they are good partners for procesing

- Based on the preliminary analysis it does not

seem so

Conclusion Thanks

dilip.gokhale@syngenta.com (till 31.12.2010)dilipglobal@gmail.com