In the Rhineland, the beets were one of the tithes which farmers had to pay to their feudal lords from the 15th century on. In the early 17th century, the Thirty Years’ War gave rise to a period of starvation; cultivating beets proved to be easier and more productive than growing cereals.
Au début du 17e siècle, la Guerre de Trente Ans provoque une famine, durant laquelle la culture de la betterave se révèle plus aisée et plus rentable que les cultures céréalières.
