The digestibility of fodder beet by cattle increases if it is crushed to a certain size before feeding. Therefore, root crops are recommended to be shredded before feeding. The efficiency of the shredders is determined by the energy costs of cutting, which depend on the cutting force. The task of reducing the cutting force when grinding root crops is relevant. (Research purpose) The research purpose is in studying the features of devices developed to assess the cutting force of root crops during their shredding. (Materials and methods) The methodological basis for studying the features of the evaluation of the cutting force of root crops during their grinding with an experimental chopper was the work of scientists and specialists in the study of the processes of grinding agricultural products. The analysis of its showed that when evaluating the cutting force of root crops, it is necessary to take into account the design and operational characteristics of shredders. The article presents the features of the experimental shredder manufactured under RF Patent No. 2729524. (Results and discussion) The article presents the cutting forces during the grinding of fodder beet varieties «Record Poly» and «Crimean pink» from the depth of the knife into the beet and from the cutting speed. In the first case, a hydraulic press equipped with electronic scales, a knife wall and a video camera was used. Sets of flat knives were installed in the knife wall: wavy, with one-sided and two-sided sharpening. The experimental installation was made in order to measure the cutting force depending on the cutting speed, laboratory studies on which were carried out using a specially developed technique using computer technology. (Conclusions) Two technical devices have been developed to determine the cutting force during the shredding of fodder beet: from the depth of the knife into the beet and from the cutting speed.