Hugh Martin THE 2002 sugar crop was never expected to break any records. The continuous heavy rains over the past 10 days may very well change that and we could end up seeing the lowest production in half a century. Rainfall is never welcome during the harvesting season especially after the peak ripening period has passed as it had after April. The canes would naturally have begun to grow again and that would have resulted in the lowering of the sucrose content in the juice.
In other words the best performance of this year's crop had already gone. The heavy rains not only stopped any possibility of reaping but also ensured that when reaping resumes the quality of the juice will be severely affected and sugar production targets drastically reduced.
This is common knowledge in the industry. It is also well known that the rains will come in May except in rare cases of prolonged drought. And following that is the hurricane season beginning in June when anything can happen given the volatile weather pattern that global warming has bequeathed us. Yet, knowing all this, our sugar manufacturers continue to operate a system that sees milling continuing well into July long after it ceases to be economical.
For years, Josh Jaddoo, Factory Services Manager at the Sugar Industry Research Institute (SIRI), has been urging the industry players to shorten the harvesting cycle but his exhortations have been falling on deaf ears. Instead some factories seem unable most times to begin milling before March when the sugar in the cane is at its best. By the time it has got into full stride cane quality has begun to diminish.
In fairness to the two privately owned factories, Worthy Park and Appleton, this is not the case and they usually get their crop off in reasonably good time. The same can be said too for Frome, the largest of the Government-owned factories, as it is traditionally the first to begin milling in December. One could, however, question the wisdom of opening in December when the cane has just started to ripen and as such the sucrose content is quite low. But I guess other considerations, cultural and national, may be the factors influencing the tradition. It must be conceded too that the early start allows for the closing of the crop when the juice quality is near the peak. Last crop was a particularly good one for Frome indicating an improvement in the management as the estate struggles toward efficiency.
The Government last year demonstrated its commitment to the industry by writing off a $700 million debt owed to it by cane farmers, underwriting a multi-billion dollar loan to the Sugar Company of Jamaica, and providing a $150 million re-planting loan to farmers. All of that was of course too late to effect any improvement in the performance of the present crop the early estimates of which were in the region of 200,000 tonnes sugar. With the devastating two-week rains that target will no doubt be revised to as low as 160,000.
In spite of that gloomy picture though, do not write off the sugar industry. Worthy Park had always been a model of efficiency. Appleton, over the past three or so years, embarked on a massive retooling exercise in both field and factory operations and have now taken the lead with 21st century technology. Production costs, long a major barrier to profitability, have been reduced significantly and sugar production is proving to be viable again.
The Sugar Company of Jamaica, the entity that operates the Government's six factories, now freed of its overwhelming debt, has embarked on a similar retooling exercise. It showed off some of this last week at a field demonstration on its Bernard Lodge Division in St. Catherine. Best Practice is what they are going for and proudly displayed some of the improved technologies they have either put in place or are in the process of implementing.
These are designed not only to increase production but most importantly to reduce operating costs.
Last year the average cost of producing a pound of sugar in the Jamaican sugar industry was US$0.30 while the price received on the export market was US$0.22. If it would not be so hilarious we could easily be accused of dumping. I understand that the latest figure on unit cost is US$0.25 per pound reflecting an encouraging improvement. The target most factories have set themselves is US$0.15 which would allow them to make a reasonable profit if the export price remains stable.
The measures being implemented on the SCJ farms are designed to improve efficiency in the delivery of inputs such as fertiliser, herbicides and water. The introduction of machinery that places the fertiliser, for example, right at the root of the plant where it is easily available instead of being broadcast, immediately cuts waste while at the same time ensures that the plant gets the required amount of nutrients to produce at its optimum. The Center Pivot irrigation system in use at Bernard Lodge and at New Yarmouth is reported to have reduced water requirements by 40 per cent while cane yields have increased by as much as 50 per cent.
Mechanical harvesting was once an unmentionable concept in the industry. With the move back to green cane harvesting we are going to see a lot more of it. This is so because cutting green cane manually is hell on the cutters so you won't be hearing any opposition from the now enlightened unions. There is no doubt that the introduction of new technologies will see the displacement of some workers but new jobs are also being created and training opportunities provided.
The sugar industry has been on a long downward spiral. With the 2002 crop it will have hit rock bottom. But that bottom is a springboard and we will see the resilience that has allowed sugar, over the past three centuries, to bounce back again and again. So, don't give up on it yet.
Hugh Martin is a communications specialist and farm broadcaster. E-mail: humar@cwjamaica.com.
