DistantNews
Support us
🇫🇯 Fiji /Economy & Trade

Fiji cane purity falls, risking local sugar supply

From FBC News · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Fiji's sugar production faces a threat due to declining cane quality, according to Fiji Sugar Corporation CEO Bhan Singh.
  • The sucrose content in delivered cane has fallen significantly, impacting the industry's ability to meet production targets.
  • Factors contributing to the decline include farming practices, soil health, climate, fertilizer use, and delays in delivering harvested cane to mills.

Fiji's sugar industry is grappling with a significant decline in cane quality, jeopardizing the nation's ability to meet its sugar production targets, stated Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) Chief Executive Bhan Singh. Speaking at a Sugar Industry Special Committee consultation, Singh explained that the amount of sucrose, the key component for sugar production, in sugarcane delivered to mills has dropped considerably over recent years.

The purity of cane has fallen from historical levels of around 13 percent pure cane sugar to about 9.5 percent currently.

— Bhan SinghExplaining the significant decline in sugarcane quality.

Singh clarified that the issue is not internal inefficiencies within the FSC, as suggested by some, but rather a fundamental problem with the raw material itself. The FSC meticulously measures sucrose levels in all cane deliveries, confirming a substantial decrease. Historically, the purity of cane averaged around 13 percent pure cane sugar, but this has fallen to approximately 9.5 percent currently. Singh warned that if sucrose levels drop below nine percent, sugar production could become increasingly challenging.

Several interconnected factors are contributing to this deterioration in cane quality. These include suboptimal farming practices, the health of the soil, prevailing climate conditions, the effectiveness of fertilizer use, and critically, delays between harvesting the cane and its delivery to the mills. While some international mills process cane within 24 hours of harvesting, Fiji has experienced instances where cane is delivered up to seven days after being cut.

If sucrose levels fall below nine percent, sugar production could become increasingly difficult.

— Bhan SinghWarning about the consequences of continued decline in cane quality.

If the quality of sugarcane does not improve, Fiji may face the prospect of importing sugar to meet domestic and international demand. This situation underscores the urgent need for improvements in agricultural methods and supply chain logistics to ensure the viability of the country's vital sugar industry.

If cane quality does not improve in the coming times, Fiji may have to spend on importing sugar.

— Bhan SinghHighlighting the potential need for sugar imports if the situation does not improve.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by FBC News. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog