Young Sidney Sugars Agriculturists Work Hard To Ensure Harvest Runs Smoothly

During the busy time of harvest, Agriculturists at Sidney Sugars Inc. work extra hard to help ensure that things are running smoothly at area beet receiving stations. Two of the newest agriculturists at Sidney Sugars Inc. who help contribute to making sugar beet harvest happen are Somer Reidle and Timothy Cymbaluk. 

Reidle is originally from Bainville, MT, and has been working for Sidney Sugars since June 2019. She was hired fresh out of college, "I graduated in May 2019 from Montana State University, Bozeman with an agriculture business degree and was hired on June 1, 2019," stated Reidle. 

She covers the Sugar Valley growing area where she helps with all aspects of the sugar beet growing and harvesting process. "My favorite part about this job is the opportunity to get to know and develop relationships with the growers in my area. I also like the variety of things I get to do with this job. Since this is a vertically integrated company, I get to see everything from the beets being planted to the end product of sugar."

Reidle grew up on a family farm/ranch, which helped her determine that she wanted to do something related to agriculture. A local Bainville beet grower informed her of the job positions and encouraged her to apply - she explained that she was glad she did. She added, "Harvest is a little wild because I have a lot of people I have to manage, but overall it is a pretty fun job!"

Reidle also explained that she had learned a lot since starting the job. "I grew up here and I have been around beets forever, my parents used to grow them when I was little, but I did not realize how much people it takes to just make harvest work let alone the rest of the year," stated Reidle. 

Cymbaluk, originally from Crookston, MN, has been working at Sidney Sugars since the start of 2020. He was also hired fresh out of college. He graduated in Dec. 2019 with a bachelor's degree in Crop and Weed Science from North Dakota State University.

Through his position as an agriculturist, he manages the Sidney and Culbertson factory yard harvest operations and beet storage. He is also responsible for managing harvest operations and beet storage for assigned areas along with managing grower relationships to attract and retain sugar beet growers. "During harvest, I help keep beet pilers running, get crews lined up, and help out with all that stuff," stated Cymbaluk.

Although Cymbaluk did not grow up on a farm, he has an extensive background working with sugar beets. "In high school, I worked as a student assistant at the University of Minnesota Crookston, where I worked underneath Dr. Ashok Chanda and Jason Brantner in sugar beet Plant Pathology. This job involved a lot of teamwork with our stand counts and preparing for field day. I established good communication with farmers, consultants, and agriculturalists when they came in to drop off samples," explained Cymbaluk. 

So far, he has enjoyed his time at Sidney Sugars. "I have really liked working here so far! I really like the people I work with and I think the area is really pretty compared to back home. My favorite part about this job is when I get to walk in the fields during the summer months," said Cymbaluk. 

Both Reidle and Cymbaluk are busy helping manage the area beet receiving stations. They hope to continue to help growers throughout the rest of the year in addition to the upcoming growing season to produce a profitable sugar beet crop.