Good news for farmers as the Government has advised the Fiji Sugar Corporation to top-up the 2017 cane season payment by $3.68.

The final payment for 2017 will be $3.90 per tonne, which includes a “wash-up” payment of 22cents per tonne.

FSC CEO Graham Clarke says this final payment of $3.90 per tonne will be free of FSC deductions.

He says this will be paid to cane farmers on Friday.

”The payment is to bring the total cane payment for the 2017 year to $85 per tonne and that basically is the reason for the top-up. The top-up is paid in addition to the normal wash-up payment to the FSC so the two together will make a payment of $3.90 per tonne of cane to farmers who delivered cane in 2017.”

To date, the price paid to the farmers for the 2017 cane season is $81.10 per tonne.

With this top-up to the final cane payment, the total payment for the 2017 cane season will increase to $85 per tonne.

The top-up payment is the government’s additional commitment to pay a guaranteed price of $85 per tonne for a period of three years as announced in the 2018/2019 National Budget.

“The government’s continuous support to the sugar cane industry through development strategies such as; cane planting grants, subsidies on fertilizers and weedicides, farm mechanization grants, drainage and cane-access roads has not only reduced the cost of production to the growers but has positively improved the industry.”

The Sugar Industry Tribunal (SIT) has certified the final “wash-up” cane payment of 22cents per tonne of cane from the 2017 season’s sales proceeds.
This brings the growers share of sales proceeds for the 2017 cane season to a total of $125,126,202, as per the Master Award.