News of deal to export sugar to US as harvest set to start

By Emmanuel Joseph

Government’s agricultural management agency is expected to rake in some $4.2 million in revenue from locally-branded packaged sugar exports sold to the United States during this year’s harvest which starts on Monday.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Barbados Agricultural Management Company (BAMC) Orlando Atherley revealed on Friday that this country recently secured a contract to sell the United States 2,500 tons of packaged sugar every year.

“It is only a market that we secured in the earlier part of this year. So we did the first container around February this year,” Atherley told Barbados TODAY.

Earlier on Friday, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Indar Weir announced that Monday would be the start of the 2023 sugar harvest.

Weir told a post-Cabinet Press Conference at Parliament Buildings that Barbados has almost now doubled the price it’s getting for its packaged sugar exports.

“Previously we sold sugar for somewhere around $900 Barbados dollars per ton. We are now selling sugar at around $1,500 to $1,700 per ton,” Weir explained.

“The factory [Portvale] is projected to produce 5,229 tons of sugar and 7,100 tons of molasses in 2023. The BAMC has started exporting sugar from Barbados. We have done exports to Trinidad and to St Lucia and now we are getting into the US market. Twenty-two tons of packaged sugar have been exported to the USA. That shipment left on February 10th, and we will do another shipment in March,” the minister disclosed.

“So we have been able to penetrate the international market with packaged Barbados sugar. Previously what we did, we produced the sugar and exported it in bulk, and that is the reason we had the bond at the port. We are no longer using that bond and we are no longer exporting sugar in bulk. We are actually packaging sugar now with Barbadian branding and that sugar is being exported to the US, and we still have the option of exporting to the UK as well,” he added.

Meanwhile, the agriculture minister gave the assurance that all systems are go for the harvesting of canes to begin on Monday after his expectations for a mid-February crop start fell through mainly because the quality of the canes was not up to par.

“Just to let you know that we have concluded all discussions with stakeholders and the unions involved. Those unions would be the Barbados Workers’ Union and the Sugar Industry Staff Association, both of whom we have very good relationships with, and would continue to do so, and would continue to include them every single time we are about to make decisions at the BAMC,” Weir said.

He revealed that the research team at the Agronomy Research Department conducted a briefing on Tuesday with the stakeholders, BAMC and the Barbados Sugar Industry Limited (BSIL) to discuss the results of the brix survey. That survey is designed to test the sucrose content of the canes to determine their readiness for harvesting.

“That discussion confirmed that the canes were in fact at a mature stage and are ready for harvesting, and therefore we took the decision to start the crop on Monday. The factory is also ready. We concluded a major boiler retubing exercise, and I must thank the staff over at Portvale for the sterling work they have done. We do anticipate the factory will work a lot better this harvest,” Weir told reporters.

He said the systems within the factory have been tested successfully and a steam trial was to be conducted today to make sure all the pressure on the tubes in the boiler could withstand the consistency that’s required.

Weir said that after those trials, factory officials will then give the all-clear for the plant to operate without too much down-time.

“We have estimated that we will harvest 107,000 tons of cane this year, which is an increase of 12,558 tons, or 13 per cent year on year. The increase in volume is attributed to increased acreage planted and increased yields because we have now been using hot water-treated canes,” he pointed out.

The minister explained that this treatment was used on canes that were afflicted by ratoon disease which caused them to be stunted in growth. Weir said this measure, having rid the canes of the disease, has boosted yields. “That is the reason why we have this 13 per cent increase on last year,” he added. 

emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb