Barbados has initiated discussions with China for assistance on research aimed at developing new varieties of cane that are more suited as feedstock for ethanol production, and for its speciality sugar products.

Since last year, Barbados has been selling branded sugars under the names Plantation Reserve and Muscavada Gold, supplying Waitrose supermarkets, Harrods and the luxury Ritz-Carlton hotels in the United Kingdom.

Cultural and historic side

The tiny country of 270,000 is also looking to exploit the cultural and historic side of the industry by mimicking Mauritius with the establishment of a museum using one of its defunct factories.

Barbados, following adjustments to the European Union preferential trading scheme and a lowering of export sugar prices, said it was also looking to China as a new market, the CMC reported Monday, saying the populous country was a net importer of the product.

"China is a very large producer of sugar, but the consumption of sugar is even greater and as a result they import approximately two million tonnes of sugar annually," said Senator Erskine Griffith, Barbados' Agriculture Minister.

"If we can get a small part of that market, it will make a great difference to us."

Barbados continues to restructure its sugar business. With the 36 per cent phased rollback of EU sugar preferences, which began last year, Griffith said the Chinese were approached to speed up research on new cane varieties, as the sector diversifies.

"We are trying to find one variety which can satisfy both the demands of high-sucrose and biomass content," said Griffith.

"The experts at the Cane Breeding Station are pursuing this by using traditional methods, which could take a minimum of 10 years. We are, therefore, looking at ways of achieving that objective in a shorter space of time."

The Chinese, he said, have indicated a willingness to work with Barbados on the research.

And private companies in China have also expressed an interest in importing two of the speciality sugar brands which Barbados placed on the market last year.

Griffith said Mauritius, which was growing some sugar cane varieties developed in Barbados, would be consulted as officials press ahead with development of a sugar cane museum similar to one in operation there.