The Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) will not accept unapproved sugarcane varieties or mixtures of approved and unapproved varieties for crushing from the 2027 season.
Sugar Industry Tribunal Registrar Timothy Brown has issued a notice warning cane farmers that they must comply with approved planting varieties or risk having their cane rejected.
In the notice dated November 4, 2026, Mr Brown said farmers had been repeatedly advised to remove unapproved cane varieties.
“The Sugar Industry Tribunal has since 2008 been advising farmers who have unapproved cane varieties to plough out these unapproved varieties,” he said.
He said the Ministry of Multi-Ethnic Affairs and Sugar Industry had issued a similar notice in 2023, directing farmers growing unapproved varieties or mixtures of approved and unapproved cane to remove them.
Mr Brown said the Ministry had also directed that grants and subsidies for existing ratoon cane involving unapproved or mixed varieties would cease from August 1, 2026.
He said FSC would now restrict fertiliser and weedicide advances to farmers growing approved cane varieties.
“This is to advise that FSC will only advance Fertilizer and Weedicide to farmers who have approved varieties,” he said.
Farmers growing both approved and unapproved varieties on separate plots would still qualify for assistance, but only for the plots containing approved cane.
Those farmers would also be required to sign an agreement confirming that fertiliser and weedicide supplied by FSC would be used exclusively on approved cane plots.
Mr Brown issued a clear warning about the consequences for farmers who failed to comply before the next crushing season.
The notice signals stricter enforcement of cane variety requirements, with farmers urged to remove unapproved varieties ahead of the 2027 crushing season.
