After 34 years at Sidney Sugars, Randy Jones is working his last harvest. He will be retiring from his position as the Ag Finance Superintendent to enjoy his family, hobbies and volunteer work.
“I’m 67 years old and it’s time to step aside and do some of the things I’ve missed out on like pheasant hunting which is always during harvest season. It’s time to let younger people step in and take over,” says Jones about his decision to retire.
The factory employs about 230 people during the harvest season, and Jones’ final harvest is expected to be a record year. A potential twenty-nine tons of beets per acre could be harvested this fall.
Jones originally moved to Sidney from Northern Wyoming to work for Holly Sugar and over the years he has seen his fair share of changes. When Jones started the factory was owned by Holly Sugar; it was later acquired by Imperial Sugar and is currently Sidney Sugars which is owned by American Crystal Sugar located in the Red River Valley in North Dakota.
Other than the changes in ownership, Jones notes that the biggest developments over the years have been in the growing process. It used to be that farmers seeded beets two inches apart and then hand-thinned them to six inches apart, which involved hiring additional people to work in the fields. Approximately 20 years ago, all of that changed; beets are now planted four and three-quarter inches to five inches apart which is a much better method as it eliminates the need for thinning and is more cost effective. Planting Roundup Ready Beets (beets that are genetically engineered to withstand the herbicide Roundup) has also been a major improvement in the growing process. Beet fields no longer need to be sprayed numerous times with six or seven different types of herbicide.
In addition to his job, Jones has been a judge of the Make it With Sugar contest every year since it began. While he has always enjoyed sampling the tasty entries, he has really appreciated getting the recipes, too. After being a long-standing judge, Jones does admit that he’s looking forward to entering in the contest next year.
His current job will be split into two positions. Cheryl Riedel will take over the administrative work such as grower payments and doing the purchasing for the Ag Department. Vanessa Pooch is an agriculturalist who will be overseeing the Tare Lab.
“It’s been a great 34 years. I’ve worked with a lot of great people, both growers and employees,” Jones says of his career at Sidney Sugars and he admits he will miss it. However he is looking forward to enjoying his pastimes.
His plans for retirement include hunting, fishing, woodworking, and gardening. Jones also plans on volunteering at the local food bank and spending lots of time with his family as his two daughters and six grandkids all live in the area.
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