Ilembe mayor, Welcome Mdabe, local farmers, sugar mills and the Canegrowers’ Association of South Africa uttered a desperate cry for immediate financial support to help farmers survive the crippling drought at a top level summit called to find ways of minimising the damage at Umhlali Country Club on Tuesday, July 21.
Commercial and small scale growers have suffered 15 000 job losses and a loss in gross revenues of around R1.7 billion.
Already burdened by existing debt incurred to survive the 2010 drought, and having lost out on about half their normal crop in the 2014/2015 season, farmers have little or no means to secure a crop for next year.
The message from the banks was clear: “Loans to farmers carrying debt and struggling to service that debt will not be granted and our policy will not allow for consolidation of debt.”
The IDC’s Jeanette le Roux said reckless lending was illegal and government must come to the party with grants.
The crop destroying eldana saccharina (African sugarcane borer) is one of a sugarcane farmer’s worst enemies – it eats cane from the inside leaving an empty stem and zero harvest.
Farmers have to apply eldana control in July to protect next year’s crop, but at R3000 per hectare, it comes with a heavy price tag.
“With no carry-over this year, we need to apply eldana control to 40 percent of our crop instead of the normal 25 percent, raising issues of affordability and the risk of a serious spike in eldana,” said local farmer, Guy Heenan.
Heenan guaranteed that farmers will not be able to pay back their bank loans next year if they are not given financial assistance now.
Most of the Ilembe district was declared a disaster area in November 2014, with the promise of drought relief funding. To date, no relief funding has been received and the disaster area declaration has lapsed.
Ilembe Mayor, Welcome Mdabe is pleading with national government to renew the disaster area application.
A select group, representing farmers, sugar mills and the Canegrowers, have been tasked with drawing up a proposal for government funding to be presented in two weeks time.
