The Fiji Sugar Corporation is secretly dumping tonnes of toxic cane juice with high sugar content from its troubled Lautoka Mill into nearby premises, resulting in huge losses to the industry.
The foul smelling juice is removed from the factory in the wee hours of the morning, dumped into pits dug near the South Pacific Fertiliser factory and covered with mill mud to avoid detection.
We are aware of two such secret operations, carried out in the early hours of Sunday 30 June 2024 and again at 3.30am on 7 July 2024 using a specially constructed truck tanker.
The Environment and Health authorities are either unaware of this dumping or have been told to turn a blind eye to it.
NFU had recently expressed concern at how growers, and indeed, the industry as a whole, are losing millions of dollars in wasted sugar from the malfunctioning Lautoka and Rarawai Mills. The above examples are part of the continuing saga.
We are informed of large quantities of manufactured sugar spilled on the filthy floor of the Lautoka Mill due to faulty conveyor belts, being regularly washed down the drains into the sea.
Lack of accountability
FSC stopped issuing weekly statistical reports on the performance of the mills ever since the current management took charge. So, there is now no information available to the growers on the actual crushing results, including mill stoppages, TCTS and so on.
The National Farmers Union is simply shocked at such attempts by FSC to cover up its failures and hide the true state of its ailing mills from the growers who have a 70% stake in the industry. Thee is a complete lack of accountability and transparency in the milling operations.
The quantity of cane crushed so far is well below the budgeted figures for the season. We have been able to establish from industry sources that the TCTS ratio is extremely high, averaging at 15 tonnes of cane to make one tonne sugar – 5 tonnes more than the norm. This is intolerable, signifying loss to growers in millions of dollars.
Another concern related to the ailing mills is the extremely long hours lorry drivers are being forced to wait to off-load cane at the mills due to the frequent stoppages and the extremely low crushing rate.
NFU is informed that the wait can be as long as 24 hours as they queue to off-load. This itself is an inhumane imposition confining the drivers to their lorries for long hours without adequate rest, shower or meals.
Environmental Pollution
FSC is now contributing heavily to environmental pollution. It is dumping the toxic juice which will eventually find its way into the sea, polluting the ocean.
It is doing the same in Labasa where cane juice overflows pumped into the Qawa River, emanate foul smell and endanger marine life. The Ba River is getting similarly polluted by outflows from the Rarawai Mill.
Inaction on the part of the authorities to prosecute FSC, is merely encouraging the Corporation not to fix this chronic problem.
Ineffective industry institutions:
Sugar Cane Growers Council (SCGC) was initially formed as an elected body to represent the interests of the growers. It is now a government-nominated entity which panders to the whims of its bosses. Chronic milling problems are causing huge losses to growers, and the industry, yet the SCGC has said not a word.
The Coalition government had promised to hold SCGC elections within three months of taking office but 19 months later, there are still no signs of Council elections being held.
As long as this situation remains, cane growers will have no voice in the industry, and will continue to suffer and be exploited.
Is the Sugar Industry Tribunal also sleeping on the job? Its duty is to ensure that FSC, as the miller, abides by the provisions of the Sugar Master Award which requires it to maintain its mills in satisfactory condition. There is continuing violation of the Award, yet the Tribunal has kept quiet. The industry needs a proactive Tribunal to keep the growers and the millers in check.
The FSC Board is stacked with political appointees who don’t seem to have a clue as to how to handle the situation at the deteriorating mills.
The new Board has not delivered. It should be replaced with competent people who have the knowledge and interests of the industry at heart.
After all, the solution is simple: shut the mills down, complete the repairs properly before restarting instead of stubbornly carrying on and risking huge losses.
The Sugar Minister
The buck finally stops with Minister Charan Jeath Singh. In the past 18 months, he has been globe trotting from India, to China, Thailand, Mauritius, Africa etc ostensibly to ‘fix’ the ailing industry with little to show for the expense. While he and his sugar cronies are having fun country-hopping, the industry is literally going down the tube.
Statistics show that disillusioned growers are increasingly opting out of an industry which is fast becoming financially unviable. Skilled mill workers and technicians are also departing for greener pastures.
We wonder if the Prime Minister is kept aware of the true state of the industry. Someone needs to step in and start cleaning up before the situation becomes irretrievable.
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