CANEGROWERS Media Release


01 February 2011: CANEGROWERS Australia supports NSW appeal for same assistance as QLD and VIC

CANEGROWERS Australia has come out strongly in support of the NSW sugar industry’s plea to make the same assistance available to New South Wales flood affected growers as that currently in place for farmers in neighbouring states.

NSW’s support measures currently fall some $10,000 short of the assistance available to farmers in Queensland and Victoria, who are able to access up to $25,000 reestablishment assistance in flood declared areas.

According to CANEGROWERS NSW Executive Officer, Andrew Tickle, the situation is dire, and made worse by the fact that in NSW sugarcane is a two year crop. “So not only are we looking down the barrel of losses from the extraordinary wet in 2010 and the roll on impacts in the 2011 crop, but our plantings have been decimated,” he says.

“The wet in 2010 meant NSW cane growers were only able to plant 30% of what they would usually plant (for harvest in 2012). The recent flooding and prolonged wet destroyed significant areas of those plantings.”

CANEGROWERS Australia CEO, Steve Greenwood, says factor upon factor has snowballed into an overall crop reduction of around 30% in NSW in 2010. He says inability to get cane in the ground could see the NSW sugarcane crop halved in harvest 2012.

“There is no doubt our NSW counterparts are hurting and we fully support their calls for access to increased – and let’s face it – more equitable support measures,” said Steve Greenwood today.

CANEGROWERS is currently preparing a comprehensive Australia-wide sugarcane impact report for the federal and state governments.

Greenwood says counting the cost of the big wet is still very much a moving target, with climatic pattern La Nina in full swing “We are holding our breath with TC Yasi bearing down on far north Queensland, another heartland of Australian sugarcane,” he says

“CANEGROWERS recently released loss estimates for season 2010 at a staggering $500 million. The impacts will cause roll on losses in the coming seasons. Current loss estimates are looking set to be severely blown around depending on where and with what force Yasi breaks land. The rainfall deluges associated with cyclonic activity would serve to further wash away more of the already dampened 2011 production estimates.”


Media Comment:
Steve Greenwood, CANEGROWERS CEO, 0488 721 156.
Alf Cristaudo, CANEGROWERS Chairman, 0418 181 204.