HARVESTED cane received at all mills in the Western Division so far has been of good quality, says Fiji Sugar Corporation executive chairman Abdul Khan.
Responding to claims by organisations representing canegrowers that farmers are reporting losses of up to 25 per cent because of dry weather, Mr Khan said it was early days as yet for any revision to the 2.08 million tonne projected harvest for the 2015 season.
“I feel it is a bit premature to review our forecast this early in the season.
“The cane we are receiving presently seems like good cane and we will do a review in a couple of months. Our field staff have already carried out a sample survey. Although certain areas may be more affected then other areas in the cane belt regions, we still feel that it may be too early for us to adjust our present forecast,” he said.
“One should be aware that we had similar dry weather last season and the growth rate has been factored into our cane volume forecast.”
Fiji Cane Growers Association general secretary Bala Dass claimed that the projected 2.08 million tonne harvest for the season could not be achieved because of the prolonged dry weather spell.
A prominent grower from Nukuloa in Ba, Arun Sharma, said he had forecast a total harvest of 800 tonnes but because of the lack of rain, he was realistically looking at harvesting between 600 and 700 tonnes.
