Agriculture
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
For information regarding Agriculture in Richland County visit the: |
Montana Department of Agriculture or the National Agricultural Statistics Service
Back to Richland County Informational Page
Major Ag Players
Sidney Sugars Inc
The Sidney Sugars refinery in Sidney is a major employer in Richland County providing full time employment for approximately 150 people and hires an additional 300 more part-time employment during the sugar beet processing "campaign, with an annual payroll of approximately $6.2 million. In 2000, the Sidney's sugar refinery paid out another $35 million to local farm families for sugar beets. Burlington Northern Santa Fe moves 200,000 tons and trucks move 75,000 tons of sugar, pulp, and molasses from the plant. Area farmers invest over $500 per acre in "out of pocket" production costs on 36,000 acres of beets. Sidney Sugars packages more than 20 different labels in 4-, 5-, and 10-lb. retail bags and exports $5 million worth of beet pulp to Japan annually. This Sidney based refinery is Richland County’s largest taxpayer.
Sidney Livestock Market CenterThe Sidney Livestock Market Center attracts ranchers from 11 Eastern Montana counties to its modern livestock sales barn facility. Continuously updated, the center features a sales ring scale and computerized office for faster service. The market center was 5th in total cattle sold in 2000 (behind only Billings’ two outlets, Butte, Great Falls, and Miles City).
|
|
Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project (LYIP)The LYIP, the backbone for the ag industry in the Lower Yellowstone Valley, supplies irrigation water to 56,000 acres through a network of 325 miles of canals, laterals, and drains. Originally built by the Bureau of Reclamation in 1907-1909, the Project is now operated by the local water users. The LYIP has responsibility to operate and maintain the facilities serving about 400 constituents. The LYIP employs 22 people and has an operating budget of $1.6 million.
|
 |
Busch Agricultural Resources, Inc.In October 2001, Busch Agricultural Resources announced they plan to build new malting barley handling facility in Sidney, Montana. Construction began on shortly thereafter.
|
|
Agriculture Research and Other Support
Both state and federal research scientists work in Sidney at the
Eastern Montana Branch Montana State University Experiment Station and the
USDA-ARS Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory/Pest Management and Agricultural Systems Research
Unit, focusing on
both irrigated and
dry-land agricultural research. The USDA staff focus their research efforts in semi-arid irrigated and
dry-land soil and water management, sustainable agricultural cropping systems, and biological pest management and control of weeds and insects. The
MSU research efforts are in the areas of safflower breeding to develop healthier food oils, renewable industrial products and livestock feeds with market-requested characteristics, cereal crop research and variety testing, sugar beet variety and production research, irrigated soil and water conservation tillage and fertility management, alternative crops, annual legume species adaptation and use in cropping systems, water quality, and laboratory technology research of value added plant products and soil and water chemicals. The following
USDA offices are located in Sidney:
-
Soil Conservation Service (SCS)
-
Agricultural Research Service (ARS), www.sidney.ars.usda.gov
-
MSU-Eastern Agriculture Research Center
-
Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS)
-
Eastern Plains Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D), www.eprcd.org