Analysis of Transportation Economics of Sugar-beet production in the Red River Valley of North Dakota and Minnesota using Geographical Information System
2013
Farahmand, Kambiz | Dharmadhikari, Nimish | Khiabani, Vahidhossein
Sugar-beet is one of the most important crops in the Red River valley of U.S. states of North Dakota and Minnesota for both social and economic reasons. Sugar-beet industry in Red River valley is owned by about 2800 shareholders who produce about 17% of America's sugar which makes them a large coop. This paper focuses on the transportation phase of this operation. We present a model to calculate the total cost associated with the sugar-beet transportation. This model utilizes the Geographical Information System (GIS) analysis to calculate the distances travelled from member coop farms during harvest and transport to processing facilities in various locations. We propose this model sheds light on a critical cost factor associated with the total economic analysis of sugar-beet processing. With a future yield forecasting it can be used to estimate the associated costs and to maximize the profit by minimizing transportation cost.
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