Sugar Crop

Hawaii, Too, Has Record Sugar Crop

DROUGHT conditions in Hawaii, as in Fiji, seem to have re acted favourably on the sugar cane crop, record yields having been realised in both areas. Hawaii reports a total crop of close to 1,250,000 tons of 96-degree raw sugar —highest ever recorded. The aver age yield on Oahu was 99.3 tons of cane and 13.1 tons of sugar per planted acre.

Following on this record crop, the independent planters’ organisations have asked for an increase in price for the 1954 season from $1.09 per ton of cane to $l.lO per ton. The millers, contesting this request, claimed that during the past three years their net return per ton of sugar, before income tax deduction, amounted to only $2.69 on cane purchased from independent grow ers, as compared with a net return of $15.80 per ton of sugar from cane produced on their own plantations.

One milling company represent ative produced figures to show that it costs an independent planter only $40.31 to grow, harvest and de liver sufficient cane to produce one •P r l l - of 96 de £ ree sugar, and that it then costs the millers $27.09 per ton to do the actual processing.

Growers pay a variable charge of

up to 25 cents per ton of cane to the millers, under an agreement with the Department of Agriculture, to cover cost of research and other services performed by the millers and not otherwise charged. The independent planters are claiming that this charge is excessive, and

should be determined by negotia tion between the millers and the individual planters, Hearings on the price to be set for 1954 took place before Depart ment of Agriculture officials, 625 in dependent planters and eight mill ing organisations being represented.