Cane growers plead for government intervention
Growers supplying sugar cane to the Felixton, Amatikulu and Maidstone mills in KZN are due payments exceeding R400-million
SUGAR cane growers who await millions in payments amid Tongaat Hulett’s financial woes, have made a plea for government intervention to safeguard thousands of livelihoods.
Tongaat Hulett announced last week that it had entered into business rescue, a decision that has affected some 4 300 growers and 14 642 farm workers.
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SA Canegrowers Association said it has written to Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Thoko Didiza; Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Ebrahim Patel, and President Cyril Ramaphosa, among others, to request ‘urgent engagements on the necessity of government financial intervention’.
“Growers supplying sugar cane to the Felixton, Amatikulu, and Maidstone mills in KZN are due payments exceeding R400-million for cane delivered in September.
“At the end of November, a further R345-million will become due for over 570 000 tonnes of cane delivered in October,” said SA Canegrowers chairperson Andrew Russell.
“Given the magnitude of the challenge at hand, SA Canegrowers does not believe the industry can withstand the present peril without financial assistance from government,” he said.
The plea comes amid ongoing engagements with business practitioners to find solutions and restore operations at sugar mills, as well as address the non-payment of growers as a result of the business rescue.
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