MOF Sugar Price Up

Again Fiji Cane Farmers Will Benefit

FOLLOWING discussions between the UK Ministry of Food and Commonwealth sugar producing countries in recent weeks, the MOF has agreed to a price of sugar for 1953 at £42//6/8 stg. per ton —an increase in 1952 price of £3/16/8 stg.

The Commonwealth sugar agree ment, whereby the MOF takes a set annual quota of sugar from each of the British sugar producting countries has also been extended by one year, till the end of 1960.

The new rise in the sugar price will mean more money for Fiji cane farmers. Under the terms of the agreement they have with the CSR Co., the price they are paid for cane rises in a certain proportion to any rise received by the CSR for sugar.

In 1952 the price of sugar bought by the MOF rose by £5/12/6 per ton and the cane farmers received about 14/- Fijian more for their cane, bringing it to about 66/-F per ton.

If the cane farmers’ dividend rises by the same proportion this year they should receive about 9/- more

for their cane, bringing the price about £3/15/- per ton.

The MOF price rise is somewl surprising as Cuba and other W Indies producers are now produci vigorously and world stocks i believed to be more than adequ; for demand. However, it does me more prosperity for Fiji.

Fiji expects a record sugar cr next year of an estimated 1,210,0 tons (the crop this year, just finish crushing, was 985,000 tons of su* cane). Higher price for sugar a bigger crops should do somethi towards getting Fiji out of financ troubles—she has had an adve: trade balance in the last year.