Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 324: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the extent to which sugar beet production continues in each of the EU member states including Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4197/10]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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The 2006-2009 scheme for the restructuring of the European sugar industry, which was implemented as part of the reform of the EU sugar regime, resulted in the EU sugar quota being reduced by 5.2 million tonnes to 13.3 million tonnes. EU sugar production is now concentrated in 18 Member States (as opposed to 23 before the reform) which enjoy favourable agronomic conditions. They are Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom. Over 75% of production is accounted for by 7 of these Member States, namely (in order of size of quota) France, Germany, Poland, UK, Netherlands, Belgium and Italy. In Ireland, the growing of beet for sugar processing ceased with the ending of the sugar industry in 2006 but a quantity of beet continues to be grown for fodder purposes.