Crushing is set to begin with Isis mill carrying the southern load

Cane crushing season is set to get underway in the Wide Bay but not without some of the industry’s biggest challenges yet. Here’s the outlook across the region. VIDEO.

This crushing season could make or break local cane growers with Bundaberg farmers supplying less cane than ever and Isis Mill being left to carry the weight of southern growers.

Canegrowers CEO Mark Pressler said this was the first year Bundaberg Sugar as a business had more cane of their own than they did from other local growers.

He said this shift was due to the fact sugar cane farmers in the region had moved onto other industries like potatoes or macadamias.

The nature of orchid crops signifies a lasting shift for local growers leaving the cane industry.

“Horticulture crops come and go, whereas orchids are pretty permanent,” Mr. Pressler said.

This reflects a common trend emerging for local cane growers who have diversified or quit the industry entirely.

Locals mills closing have given more farmers the signal to leave.

With the Maryborough Mill closing in the last twelve months, huge pressure was put on the Isis Mill to process sugar cane from the southern region.

The Millaquin Mill is not in a position to lift that pressure, Manager Robert Zahn told the NewsMail.

“Maryborough has had very minimal impact on the Bundaberg milling business,” he said

“However, the closure of Bingera has posed the challenges of transporting the cane across the Burnett river to Millaquin mill.”

Mark Pressler speaks about this cane crushing season.

Mr Pressler said rising fuel costs further impacted those challenges.

“The biggest problem is freight costs, and that’s what they’re [the southern growers] up against now even getting it to Isis,” he said, adding Millaquin Mill continued to face its own issues with struggles to find and maintain suitable staff.

“This seems to be wide spread issue across most industries at the moment,” he said.

Recent heavy rains have shifted the season start back a week, and may continue to have an impact.

Mr Zahn said the weather conditions also looked likely to be challenging this season and the mill would endeavour to be available to the growers whenever they could supply cane.

Still, Mr Pressler believed estimates of just over a million tonnes could be low.

“We had a pretty good growing season, we had good timely rain, and then March-April saw it go dry,” he said

“That’s when we did the estimate, hence why I think there could be a bit more.

“It was dry at the time … then to get that sort of rain with mild temperatures, the cane just kept growing.

The crushing season is set to run until mid-November and Mr Pressler encouraged everyone to stay safe on the roads around cane trains and haul-outs.