Rewa Rice Results

Not So Bright

From a Staff Correspondent Le to a combination of circum ces the new CSR rice mill at sori, Fiji, processed only 80 tons ce up to the end of harvesting uly. There had been hopes of iling perhaps 3,000 tons.

ASONS given for the poor re mit were resistance by the farmers to a change-over from r cane to rice following the ire of the CSR cane mill last imber, and consequent late ting; less acreage than had hoped; a severe nitrogen iency due to the plowing in of and rotten trash; a drought a period of six weeks in uary-March when rain was needed; and hoarding of paddy by the farmers due to the un iin outlook, plus higher con )tion due to a poor rice harvest ie district in the 1958-59 season, e grower-resistance to planting partly the result of a hope another cane milling company h had been formed would find inance to get itself established, did not happen. The rice crop Id have been in the ground by November. Most of it was not ;ed until February.

March 18 the Commissioner ral issued a statement through Public Relations Office which inter alia “over 8,000 acres of nad been planted” and forecast Dd harvest.

Less Than Announced

August the Department of ;ulture admitted to PIM that ict only 5,536 acres had been ed in all. The normal rice ing in the district is about acres and there has been : 10,000 acres under cane. So about 2,500 acres of cane land converted to rice growing this s manager of the CSR rice diary, Rewa Rice Limited, said agust that those farmers who decided to change over to rice fear had co-operated fully with advice given them by the any and the Department of ulture. The possibility of a e nitrogen deficiency of the esulting from plowing in cane lowever been overlooked. This ency should be less next n, but fertilisers would be re d. 3 average yield per acre was ibly well below the 16 cwt. ted, though it varied widely farm to farm.

Ere seemed to be no immediate s of knowing just how much ¥ was actually produced this n. Some of the crop had L on gone t° one or other of 20-odd small Indian-owned

mills in the district, and some of these were known to be paying £35 per ton for paddy—that is, £5 in excess of the CSR price. It was also likely that a lot of unmilled paddy was being held by the farmers, and some of this might be brought out next season.

Of the 80 tons actually milled by the CSR, about 50 tons came from a group of Fijian farmers in the Tailevu Province who had been urged to grow rice by Ratu George Cakobau (Roko Tui Tailevu). These Fijians were not previously grow ing sugar cane. Next season they intend expanding their rice acre age.

According to a circular issued by the CSR prior to the establishment of the rice mill last year, the company would consider closing down the new mill if the supply did not reach 2,000 tons in 1961.

The mill manager said in August that there were hopes that a very much better result would be achieved in the coming season as there was no reason why planting should not take place at the right time this year. It was also con sidered that many more farmers would change over to rice.

Apart from rice, there were signs that the farmers were also changing over to other crops.