PRIME Minister and Minister for Sugar Voreqe Bainimarama said his government was looking at establishing a Price Stabilisation Fund and embarking on capital projects to reduce the volatility of sugarcane prices to farmers.
Responding to a question from Opposition member Ratu Sela Nanovo in Parliament on Friday on whether the Government would establish a minimum cane price of $85 a tonne, the PM said this:
“The question is not to pay an arbitrarily derived guaranteed price to the farmers, but to ensure that we pay a price to our farmers that is fair and reasonable, so that they continue to remain in the industry and make a reasonable living from farming,” he said.
He added that Ratu Sela should be aware that sugar was a commodity and, as such, was exposed to the world market price for commodities.
“Although our sugar may be receiving a premium due to the quota access into the EU, which is to come to an end soon, and everyone knows about that, this premium tends to vary and based on the world market price for sugar.”
Mr Bainimarama said his government was working on reducing growers’ costs and embarking on diversification activities such as cogeneration, ethanol production, retail packaging and refining to increase revenue streams.
“The industry will continue to pay a reasonable price for sugar cane, and this will be based on proper analysis of all associated costs rather than just plugging an arbitrary value, as proposed by the honourable member.”
