A worker cuts sugar cane on April 12, 2018 not far from the Bologna rum distillery in Basse-Terre in Guadeloupe (AFP/Archives/Helene Valenzuela)
The conflict which has paralyzed the sugar campaign since March 1 in Guadeloupe ended with an agreement concluded between planters and the factory Gardel on the question of the price of sugar cane.
A meeting organized by the prefect of Guadeloupe and local elected officials resulted on Friday in a slight increase in the purchase price of sugar cane by the factory via financial compensation.
A collective of farmers, joined by the majority of agricultural unions in the region, demanded remuneration of 120 euros per tonne of cane. The price set by multi-annual agreement was set in 2023 between 109 and 113 euros, a price modulated in particular by the sugar content of the cane stems.
To finance this increase in prices which comes when more than 80% of the price of cane is already paid by public subsidies, an additional 2 million have been announced, paid by the department (250,000 euros), the State (900,000 euros) , the region (500,000 euros), and even the factory (500,000 euros).
“We are not entirely satisfied, but we had to find a consensus to start the harvest,” said Willem Monrose, leader of the Farmers’ Collective, as the tractors left the Jarry economic zone which they had been blocking for two days, the local business leaders denouncing a “hostage situation”.
Trailers full of sugar cane in front of the Grand-Anse sugar refinery in Grand Bourg on the island of Marie-Galante in Guadeloupe, April 12, 2007 (AFP/MARCEL MOCHET)
“It’s a small step forward, there is still work to be done, but some farmers were also starting to grumble, a way out was needed,” also specified Eugène Mardirivin, another figure in the collective.
The factory, affected by partial unemployment measures for several weeks, is awaiting its restart on Sunday.
“We have a considerable delay in the harvest,” Nicolas Philippot, director of Gardel, the sugar factory in Guadeloupe, told the press.
Only 2,700 tonnes of sugar, out of the 12,000 planned for this time of year, were produced according to him.
– Failures –
“This additional envelope represents between 8 and 10 euros more per tonne, when we are on saccharine riches around 8 or 7%, as is currently the case,” clarified Xavier Lefort, the prefect of the Guadeloupe region, who also warned: “we will have to continue to work on the sector”.
Because it “is not in good condition”, he lamented, recalling the faults of the local sugar culture. In addition to reduced production compared to global volumes, the cane-sugar sector is suffering from lower yields, a decline in saccharine wealth and a structure that needs to be reformed, according to numerous reports.
Among the players in the cane world, the observation of these failures is unanimous. The last agreement, signed at the end of a completely similar conflict, even remained “open”, in order to launch projects around the renovation of the world of cane, which represents 10,000 jobs on the island, of which less than 2,000 planters.
Quality control of sugar cane juice in the Bellevue distillery near Capesterre on the island of Marie-Galante in Guadeloupe, April 12, 2007 (AFP/Archives/MARCEL MOCHET)
“We can wonder about the way in which wealth (saccharins, which serve as the basis for part of the planters’ remuneration, editor’s note) is calculated,” also declared the prefect, recalling that the formula dated from 1983. The price of the cane, “made up of segments with different calculation methods”, has become “illegible”, he again regretted. The technical aspects of yield per hectare and the varieties of cane to be selected must be reconsidered.
“There is also a historical subject which is the sharing of value: a fringe of the result could be, when it exists, redistributed to the planters,” added Mr. Philippot, specifying that the agreement was “heard by the shareholders “.
For its part, the factory relies on the production of special sugars (60% of production), sold more expensively on world markets. “We must also launch this year, the first production of organic sugars in Europe,” he said. New hope for this sector under construction.
© 2024 AFP
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