THE Maryborough region is the first cane growing district in Queensland to reach agreement on a new cane supply agreement since the change in sugar industry legislation.
MSF Sugar and Maryborough Canegrowers, along with all Maryborough and Sunshine Coast cane growers, have finalised the Collective Cane Supply Agreement (CSA) for the 2017, 2018 and 2019 seasons.
The key change to the agreement is it gives growers choice in how the raw sugar in their cane will get marketed.
Under new grower choice legislation, all cane growers have the option of selecting any relevant marketing service to price and sell their cane.
MSF Sugar general manager Maryborough region Stewart Norton said the outcome was 100 per cent of growers supplying Maryborough Mill had taken advantage of high 2017 prices by forward pricing their crops.
He said it was important to MSF Sugar that growers received satisfactory outcomes for their crops and were also able to balance their needs to forward price.
“We delivered CSAs for 2017 and beyond that comply with the Sugar Industry (Real Choice in Marketing) Amendment Bill 2015 that became law in December,” Mr Norton said.
“As a company, MSF Sugar took a conscious decision to expedite our CSA negotiations.
“We want our cane suppliers to be sustainable and to provide them with certainty about operating their businesses
“When cane growers make good profits the benefit flows through the local economy, so it is good for them, good for the mill and good for the district.”
