From bags to bulk
In the early decades of Queensland’s sugar industry, raw sugar was handled manually in jute bags. The process was labour-intensive, slow and costly, with ships loaded bag by bag and exports constrained by time, weather and workforce availability.
As production increased and export markets expanded, it became clear the industry needed a fundamentally different approach. In response, bulk sugar terminals were developed from the 1950s onwards – built with significant funding from growers and millers as a shared investment in efficiency, scale and competitiveness.
While industry-funded, the terminals were initially managed under a government statutory framework, reflecting their strategic importance to Queensland’s economy. This model combined public oversight with industry commitment, laying the foundations for the bulk handling system that would later evolve into industry ownership.
Building scale for global trade
As international demand grew and vessel sizes increased, Queensland’s bulk terminals were continually upgraded.
Facilities such as Lucinda and Townsville became recognised internationally for their capacity and efficiency, with improvements allowing ships to be loaded at world-leading rates. By the late 1990s, Queensland’s terminals were handling millions of tonnes of sugar each year, supporting an export-focused industry operating in increasingly competitive markets.
This investment ensured Queensland sugar could meet customer expectations for quality, volume and reliability.
Industry ownership
A defining milestone came in 1998–2000, when ownership of Queensland’s bulk sugar terminals was transferred from government to an industry-owned structure.
This shift reflected a clear industry view: infrastructure that is critical to growers and mills should be controlled by the industry itself.
In April 1998, the Queensland Government approved the establishment of the Bulk Sugar Terminals Management Group (BSTMG) to oversee the transition. The BSTMG brought together industry representatives with responsibility for facilitating the transfer of terminal assets and leases to an industry-owned company.
Grower interests on the BSTMG were represented through CANEGROWERS, ensuring growers had a direct voice in decisions affecting terminal ownership, governance and long-term access.
Operating for the industry
In August 1998, Sugar Terminals Limited (STL) was registered to manage commercial operations. By August 2000, ownership of bulk sugar terminal assets and associated port leases formally transferred to STL, with the value of the assets exceeding $340 million.
STL entered into formal arrangements to manage, operate and maintain the terminals on behalf of the industry, ensuring continuity, operational excellence and commercial discipline.
The Board structure reflected the shared nature of the asset, with representation for grower and miller shareholders, as well as an independent director.
An integrated supply chain
Queensland’s bulk sugar terminals form part of a tightly coordinated logistics network.
Raw sugar is transported from mills by road and rail to terminals servicing each milling area. At each point, sugar is identified, tracked and managed to ensure quality, traceability and efficiency from paddock to port.
This integrated system allows Queensland sugar to be shipped throughout the year, providing international customers with confidence in supply reliability – a critical advantage in global trade.
Infrastructure that matters
As the sugar industry moved into deregulation and greater exposure to global markets, efficient bulk terminals became even more important.
Industry-owned export infrastructure helped:
- reduce supply chain costs
- improve competitiveness in world markets
- provide certainty for growers during structural change
- support marketing flexibility in a deregulated environment
In an industry where commercial risk increasingly rests with growers, control over critical infrastructure has been essential.
A lasting legacy
Queensland’s bulk sugar terminals are more than industrial facilities – they are the physical expression of an industry working together to secure its future.
Through coordinated advocacy, investment and governance – including direct grower representation through CANEGROWERS – the industry created infrastructure capable of supporting generations of cane growers.
A century on from CANEGROWERS’ formation, bulk sugar terminals remain central to Queensland sugar’s global success.
