National Farmers Union General Secretary Mahendra Chaudhry has accused the Fiji Sugar Corporation of failing the sugar industry through what he describes as incompetence and neglect, arguing that mill inefficiencies and poor management are at the heart of the sector’s ongoing struggles.
Responding to recent comments by Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka on the state of the sugar industry, Chaudhry said farmers were continuing to produce cane but FSC’s inability to efficiently process it was causing major losses.
“The ‘cows’ are producing, Prime Minister. The ‘milk’ is literally going down the drain due to FSC’s failure to run its mills efficiently,” Chaudhry said.
He pointed to last season’s fire at the Rarawai Mill, which forced the facility to shut down for three months during the peak crushing season.
According to Chaudhry, more than 80,000 tonnes of cane in the Ba Mill area went unharvested as a result of the shutdown.
“The fire was caused by negligence on FSC’s part,” he claimed.
He said the disruption resulted in the loss of about 8,000 tonnes of sugar valued at approximately $8 million.
Chaudhry also criticised FSC’s milling performance, claiming it had deteriorated significantly over the past three years.
“Last year it used an average 13 tonnes of cane to make one tonne of sugar. This is absolutely unacceptable given that the norm for the past several years was around 10 tonnes cane to a tonne of sugar.”
He estimated that poor milling efficiency had cost the industry and the nation about $35 million.
“How can you in all fairness say that ‘the cow is not giving any milk?’ What gross injustice is this?” he asked.
The NFU leader also raised concerns about FSC’s financial position, claiming the corporation had accumulated a further $110 million in debt despite a $200 million debt write-off by Government last year.
“For the past three years, FSC’s financial position has continued to decline markedly,” he said.
“It is the Fiji Sugar Corporation that has failed the industry through sheer incompetence and neglect. It is the Sugar Ministry that has failed the industry, and the farmers, by not holding FSC management and its board accountable for these failures.”
Chaudhry questioned why Government had continued to support FSC’s leadership despite the corporation’s financial and operational challenges.
“Why is your government turning a blind eye to the incompetence of the FSC executives? In any other corporate organisation, the Board and top management would have been sacked years ago for driving the company into virtual liquidation,” he said.
He also criticised the lack of progress by the Sugar Industry Select Committee, which was established a year ago and tasked with developing recommendations to transform the industry into a modern and sustainable sector.
“This has not happened. Under your chairmanship the committee has not met so far,” he said.
Chaudhry said promises of an all-industry conference had also failed to materialise and called on the Prime Minister to convene both the Select Committee and industry conference without further delay.
“We must get to grips with the real issues. We need an honest, hands-on approach by people who are capable of delivering results.”
“The first step is to hold the executives of FSC accountable for its failures. Those who can’t deliver ought to be shown the door.”
“For your part, you should convene the Select Committee and the all-industry conference without delay. That may well be the beginning of an inclusive approach to effectively address the problems of the industry,” Chaudhry said.
