Sweet year for cane despite drought

It’s been a tough year for many farmers, but a sweet crop and some new business ventures bode well for cane farms

THE few drops of water that glisten in the sunlight off Ross Farlow's cane are a welcome sight for the fourth-generation farmer near Maclean.

"I planted in October and we've had very little rainfall," he said.

"But that fall, there was widespread rain of around 50mm, that was a good Christmas present."

Mr Farlow not only has his farm to look after. The chairman of the Clarence Canegrowers, he is also chairman of the NSW cane growers council and represents NSW on the Australian cane growers council.

And despite every area he speaks to, whether locally or in the far-north reaches of Queensland having their own set of issues, the lack of rainfall is a hot topic on everyone's lips.

Which is why the recent news from Sunshine Sugar about the local cane season comes as a sweet return.

The Harwood sugar mill crushed 540,916 tonnes, and while the tonnage is slightly down, the CCS, or sugar content CCS levels have hit what is thought to be record highs across the three Northern Rivers cane growing areas, with readings exceeding 16.50 with the cane purity levels have been better than expected.

"Considering the lack of rainfall we've had, the crops have held up remarkably well," Mr Farlow said.

"We put that down to an Australia leading uptake of clean seed from the agricultural services department within the mill. Pro rata we plant more clean seed than any other cane growing milling area in Australia."

Mr Farlow said he higher quality seed is able to withstand the effects of drought, and times of wet weather and has paid off in this season's returns.

"While the tonnage was down, and we'd like to see a couple of hundred thousand more tonnes across the area, the sugar content was a fair bit higher than our fiver year average," he said.

"We've got to hang in there through the dry times, and the seasons will change, the cycle will change and it'll come back to being more favourable."

Mr Farlow said that the NSW industry was strong thanks to the relationship between the farmers, and the milling sector and their management teams, especially the diversification program that had been implemented by CEO Chris Connors.

"When you're a small business, diversification is the key, and that'll help us," he said.

Mr Connors said that as they hoped for some relief from the current dry conditions, Sunshine Sugar remains focused on the future of the business.

"From our Low GI Sugar that is gaining increased traction internationally; to our bottled water and rum distillery partnerships - we are an industry that is staying positive and proactive," he said.

Major announcements for Sunshine Sugar included the sale of Low GI sugar to Malaysia which is continuing, Bakers Delight nationally making the switch to Sunshine Sugar Low GI, the first batch of botanical water from sugar cane bottled by beverages partner AquaBotanical and a partnership established with Holey Dollar Rum Distilling.

He said upcoming news will include product developments in the areas of medical nutrition and livestock nutrition.

Despite the challenges the rural industry provided, Mr Farlow said that all farmers were resilient, and it was part of their DNA to look after the land and be part of it.

"I think it's a good feeling to produce a good crop, to watch new cane growing out of the ground, get it to a millable stage and get a good results," he said.

"You can be your own, do the big hours and get the returns.

"It's a wonderful way of life."

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