A return of Ireland's sugar beet processing industry is unlikely, the agriculture minister has said. Supplies of sugar beet dwindled to 3,700 farmers by the time the Mallow plant was shut down. "As somebody who was born and raised in south Kildare, whose uncle was a sugar beet farmer for many years, I greatly lament the loss of the sugar beet industry," he said. "There was a decision made back in 2006... personally, I thought it was a mistake at that time that we exited the sugar beet industry. "If you don't produce sugar in Ireland, you can't say your sugar's from Ireland.

Source: Irish Examiner February 18, 2026 16:43 UTC