There are various reasons for problems in the beet crop from farming practices to poor weather to contaminated seed.
If a grower has a problem with his crop that is felt to have been caused by poor seed quality he should follow the following procedure:
1. Contact their British Sugar area manager.
2. The area manager will assess the situation and, if in agreement that the seed could be at fault, will formally raise a seed complaint on behalf of the grower.
3. Seed complaints are administered by British Sugar and are forwarded to the relevant seed breeder.4. Investigations may involve a 3rd party such as a supplier, or contractor depending on the nature of t
he complaint. The most common approach is for the seed breeder to make contact with the grower, arrange a visit, and assess whether the seed could be attributable to the poor crop.
5. Compensation, if that is necessary, is agreed on an individual basis between the grower and seed breeder.
Where there is a higher than usual volume of complaints for any particular variety, British Sugar and the NFU will take it up with the breeder to ensure that a reasonable compensation package will be made available to affected beet growers. If this is successful, the actual level of compensation is still arranged on an individual basis but growers have the confidence that, where seed is at fault, compensation has already been assured.