Last Part of the Farm Trip
On Friday I got early and drove the last 300 miles to Port Allen, LA near Baton Rouge. I met up with Keith and Heath Morris who farm sugar cane in the area. We went out into the field to watch the sugar cane be cut. The harvester only cuts on row at a time. There are cutters on the bottom that cut the cane and a topper up top that lopsided off the leaves that have no sugar.
The sugar then goes through a series or rollers and cutters that get rid the remaining chaff and the stalk that contains the sugar is blown into the cart that is pulled beside the harvester. The carts then pass off the cane into a final cart that is pulled by a semi tractor to the mill. Each load is around 30 tons.
We then made a trip to the mill. About 40% of the loads are tested in a lab for sugar content and waste materials. The loads are then dumped. About half go directly into the mill while the remainder are stored on the ground to be converted at night.
The cane then is conveyed into the mill and is cut and pressed to break it down to more easily convert the sugar out. It goes through several processes until you end up with sugar very similar to brown sugar. It is then shipped directly to a sugar refinery for final processing.
On Saturday we met up with Heath again and went to the LSU – Auburn game. It was very interesting to watch 93,000 fans cheering for their team. Too bad the game was not very close.
Headed home on Monday and I hope my wife remembers what I look like. This has been a great trip, but I am ready to be home.
Paul Neiffer is a certified public accountant and business advisor specializing in income taxation, accounting services, and succession planning for farmers and agribusiness processors. Paul is a principal with CliftonLarsonAllen in Walla Walla, Washington, as well as a regular speaker at national conferences and contributor at agweb.com. Raised on a farm in central Washington, he has been immersed in the ag industry his entire life, including the last 30 years professionally. Paul and his wife purchase an 180 acre ranch in 2016 and enjoy keeping it full of animals.
Just a suggestion. It would be great if your article contained pictures or a video. I enjoy following your journey and your articles. Thanks