A total of $5.416million will be paid out to sugarcane farmers this week.
The payment, scheduled for yesterday, was distributed by the Sugar Cane Growers Fund, which acknowledged that technical and operational challenges resulted in delays.
Fund CEO Raj Sharma said growers across the country should receive their full payments today.
“The Sugar Cane Growers Fund (SCGF) wishes to inform all cane growers and stakeholders that a total cane payment of $5.416m has been received,” he said in a statement.
“Of this amount, only $0.321m has been deducted, meaning no deductions have been made to growers’ accounts except for those in arrears.”
He said the farmers who wished to make voluntary repayments were encouraged to deposit funds at any of their district offices.
“Please, note that outstanding balances are subject to interest, and timely repayments are advised.
“SCGF also highlights that for Priority Loans and the Cane Development Revolving Fund, there may be no automatic deductions by the Fiji Sugar Corporation.
“Growers who are in default or have existing arrangements are urged to contact their nearest SCGF office or make direct payments.
“Despite unforeseen technical and operational challenges, all cane payments have been successfully processed.”
Meanwhile, farmers in the Western Division had mixed feelings about the fourth cane payment.
Drasa sector farmer Mahen Prasad said the farmers deserved more than what they were receiving.
“To be honest, what we need is $20 per tonne as the final cane payment,” said Mr Prasad. “Our costs and our profit are not the same. More is coming out of our pockets.”
