Annual Report 2023-24

CANEGROWERS continued to provide advisory and technical support to district offices and cane analysis auditors. The cane analysis auditor support service remained active throughout the year, including troubleshooting, reviewing audit reports, and coordinating annual workshops.

A virtual workshop was held with representation from almost all districts, featuring updates from the National Measurement Institute on instrument compliance and from SRA on Near Infrared (NIR) technologies.

CANEGROWERS reaffirmed the importance of maintaining strong audit programs aligned with Cane Supply Agreements and supported the development of a Laboratory Methods Review Group to maintain standards across Australian sugar mills.

CANEGROWERS is represented on the Australian National Committee as a member of the International Commission for Uniform Methods of Sugar Analysis Ltd.

Momentum for diversification grew steadily during the year, with significant demand potential demonstrated in a number of reports for low-carbon liquid fuels (LCLF), including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). 

Discussions were held with numerous organisations looking to utilise sugarcane components as a feedstock, however, few are close to commercialisation. Jet Zero Australia and Licella are actively involved with plans to produce SAF in the sugarcane regions, the latter progressing a pilot project to produce SAF from bagasse at the Isis Mill. 

CANEGROWERS continued to lead advocacy at a state and federal level and was actively engaged with Bioenergy Australia, Low Carbon Fuels Alliance of Australia and New Zealand, and QFF to support policy settings that would enable low-carbon liquid fuels production. 

The opportunity also exists for increased power cogeneration from bagasse across the industry, which could underpin the improvement of mill performance. CANEGROWERS will persist in advocating for a feedstock strategy to leverage these exciting opportunities for growers.

Harvesting risk continued to be a major concern for growers and contractors, with evidence of ageing machinery, workforce shortages, and escalating operating costs.

CANEGROWERS collaborated with SRA to expand access to the Harvest Mate tool, allowing CANEGROWERS district managers to better understand and benchmark harvesting costs, with the ultimate aim to assist growers and their businesses.

An investigation into the structure of harvesting businesses and a simple costing exercise was completed, highlighting the need for a better understanding of how depreciation is treated with ageing equipment and the need for sustainability in business models, including the potential benefits of cooperative structures.

As the implementing partner for the Farm Business Resilience Program (FBRP) in the sugar industry in Queensland, CANEGROWERS has delivered Business Essentials workshops across the industry for the past four years. The initiative is funded by the Australian Government Future Drought Fund as well as the Queensland Government.

This year the series has consisted of a combination of in-person workshop sessions, 18 events exploring topics such as risk management for growers, strategic planning, sugar pricing, intermediate bookkeeping and industry knowledge (e.g. mechanisms for cane payment and CCS determination), along with a series of online webinars that explored topics centred around managing people,
strengthening relationships and safeguarding the business. 

The program had a direct reach of 110 individual growers.

This year Business Essentials partnered with the Next Ratoon program to deliver leadership mentoring for young growers. 

Looking ahead the program will aim to deliver a new round of grower training and engagement aimed at strengthening the resilience of our growers and leaders throughout the industry
 

Off-farm impact on water quality is the major environmental issue influencing perceptions of our industry’s sustainability credentials, through its potential influence on the health of waterways, estuaries and inshore waters of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR).

However, communities and markets are also interested in issues like GHG emissions, the health and safety of workers, and fair work practices. 

Consequently, Smartcane BMP has modules that cover these and other issues related to environmental stewardship and social responsibility, with the latest Module 4 specifically covering emissions, fair work practices and Workplace Health & Safety (WHS) in alignment with international market sustainability requirements.

CANEGROWERS continues to participate in a number of sustainability initiatives and opportunities to ensure there is a targeted and coordinated industry approach that builds on the pivotal role of Smartcane BMP.

CANEGROWERS continues to work with SRA and Australian Sugar Manufacturers (ASM) to develop a sustainability reporting framework for farm and mill sectors. Such a report will be essential in communicating the sustainability credentials of the industry.

In 2024–25 governance of this project was reset after the termination of the original consultant. The project is continuing, with governance models agreed and data mapping underway.

CANEGROWERS has also strongly influenced the ongoing SRA Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) project. This project is updating baseline estimates of environmental impacts of the industry, including calculating an emissions baseline for the industry.

These figures are highly sought after by key customers and end-users of Australian sugar. CANEGROWERS has worked closely with SRA, insisting on representative farm input data and expert review after errors in nitrogen data compromised earlier attempts.

CANEGROWERS remains a partner in the Agrifutures funded Life Cycle Analysis Metrics project, ensuring sugarcane’s traceability and sustainability metrics are robust.

CANEGROWERS met with the Australian Sustainable Finance Institute (ASFI) to propose formal acknowledgement of Smartcane BMP practices as meeting the new sustainable finance taxonomy criteria. 

The goal is for all Smartcane BMP accredited farms to be eligible for improved finance conditions acknowledging the environmental stewardship of best management practice.

CANEGROWERS engaged directly with Nestlé and Coca- Cola to ensure Smartcane BMP is recognised within their responsible sourcing and sustainability programs. Coca-Cola confirmed their domestic sourcing requires sustainability assurance, which Smartcane BMP is positioned to deliver.

For transport, CANEGROWERS led a load restraint task force and developed a cane loading guideline to address compliance challenges.

Safe and compliant cane transport remained a key focus. CANEGROWERS worked extensively with the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR), the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) and the Queensland Police Service (QPS) to secure exemptions for Christmas curfew periods and developed a protocol for harvester permit approvals.

The 2024 Sugarcane Transport Load Restraint Guide was released and promoted through a series of well attended roadshows and webinars, supporting industry understanding of load restraint obligations. 

Further efforts included advocating for the approval of new flotation tyres and expanding crossing points for tracked harvesters under the National Agricultural Vehicle Notice.

Coordination with NHVR compliance officers increased, and a clear message was communicated, agricultural vehicles must meet standards, including fatigue management, load containment and roadworthiness.
 

Unfortunately, there have been a number of fatalities in the industry and CANEGROWERS continued its leadership in WHS through education, industry collaboration, and policy development.

A roadshow was organised in partnership with NHVR and Workplace Health & Safety Queensland (WHSQ), providing clarity on compliance requirements, with eight workshops held between Cairns and Rocky Point and attended by more than 240 participants.

CANEGROWERS contributed to the finalisation of the Rural Plant and Cane Rail Safety Codes of Practice and facilitated AI-based WHS management tools in collaboration with James Cook University, helping growers generate tailored farm safety systems. 

Business Essentials offered WHS workshops, although grower engagement remained low.

CANEGROWERS participated in the SRA Research Showcase and contributed to the Annual Operating Plan and 10-Year RD&E Strategy.

An independent review of SRA operations called for improved internal processes, and CANEGROWERS, as an industry representative body, contributed feedback to the federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

CANEGROWERS supported SRA’s 10th Anniversary R&D investment of $32.6 million in additional projects. SRA laboratories moved from the old location at Indooroopilly to establish the Innovative Research & Industry Services (IRIS) Laboratories at Acacia Ridge.