Belize: BSI announces December 28 as start of the 2023-24 sugar crop
The Belize Sugar Industries Limited (BSI) says it will commence the 2023-24 crop on December 28.
In a statement, the BSI acknowledged that there has been a “delayed start” to the crop but said that the start date was agreed by most stakeholders in the sugar industry and announced by the Sugar Industry Control Board (SICB).
It said that one of the factories is already open to receive cane from all farmers, including members of the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association (BSCFA).
“While the other associations are covered under their Association’s respective commercial agreements, members of the BSCFA, who do not have a signed Commercial Agreement, will be able to deliver their sugar cane under an open agreement that does not require any signature, just the delivery of cane,” the BSI said.
It said, “This open agreement will be posted at the entrances and delivery points of the Tower Hill Sugar Mill and provides for the purchase of their sugarcane on terms identical to those set out in the Sugar Cane Purchase Agreement between BSI and BSCFA that governed the 2022/2023 crop.”
BSI said that this open agreement for BSCFA members will apply only to the harvest season ending in the summer of 2024.
“If the BSCFA signs a commercial agreement with BSI during the crop season, that newly signed agreement will immediately supersede the terms of the open deal and govern the delivery of sugar cane to BSI for the period stated therein.
“This arrangement is intended to be a short-term solution to facilitate the smooth start of the 2023-24 crop and ensure that BSCFA members have an opportunity to deliver their cane,” BSI said, adding that it “expects that the rights of the mill and farmers who wish to commence the crop will be respected, and the authorities will ensure that there is no disruption to the smooth flow of cane delivery”.
Earlier this month, the BSI registered “its dissatisfaction with the SICB’s decision to delay the start of the 2023-24 crop.
It said, as is customary, BSI hosted a crop progress meeting to update stakeholders, including government representatives, on mill readiness to start the crop and seek consensus on a start date.
However, the BSCFA neither participated nor requested a time or date change to ensure participation. At the meeting, BSI informed stakeholders that the mill would be ready to commence the crop the week of December 11, 2023.
“After discussions, BSI and the three attending associations agreed to start the crop on December 15, 2023. The SICB Chairman, who was also present, was requested to proceed with announcing the decision, fulfilling his role to notify the start date. The SICB Chairman indicated that he would follow due process.”
However, the BSI said that at a later meeting, the Sugar Cane Production Committee (SCPC) representative indicated that the crop should not start on December 15, as cane quality would not be optimal, adding “no data or analysis was presented to support this view.
“The recommendation to delay the start of the crop was surprising given the majority of farmers associations’ leaders had already indicated that commencement of the harvest, as soon as possible, was of utmost importance to prevent the loss of cane cutters moving to Mexico, where the crop has already started.
“Instead, a motion was presented at the SICB meeting to commence the crop on December 28, 2023,” the BSI said, adding, “In addition to the risk of losing cane cutters, the delay in the start of the crop is very likely to exacerbate the scarcity of plantation white sugar”.
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