Sugar cane growers see high yields

Nearly 800,000 tonnes of sugarcane have been processed into around 55,000 tonnes of white sugar by 15 mills in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta and south-eastern region since the crushing season began last week.

With more than 75,000ha under cultivation in the two regions, the volume of sugarcane harvested during the 2009-10 crop is projected at 5 million tonnes, the Viet Nam Sugar Association said in a report released at a meeting held on Tuesday in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang.

Most factories had signed contracts to provide capital, fertilisers and sugarcane breeds to farmers and consume their produce, the report said.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Bui Ba Bong said at the meeting that cities and provinces in the two regions, which are among the country’s largest sugarcane farming areas, should maintain the cultivation area.

He also called for closer co-operation between farmers and factories as well as among the factories themselves. The factories should participate in the sugar price stabilisation programme during the run up to the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday, he added.

Sugarcane is currently being purchased in the Mekong Delta region at VND1.1-1.2 million (US$55-60) per tonne and at VND950,000-1 million (US$47-50) per tonne in the south-eastern region. — VNS

Tags: Vietnam Sugar cane