The Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) has so far produced just around 42,000 tonnes of sugar and is some 18,000 tonnes away from its estimated target for this year of just over 60,000 tonnes, sources within the industry have said.
In August, GuySuCo announced via a press release that the Albion/Port Mourant estate had again surpassed its weekly production target for the second crop of 2023. That achievement, it had stated, was due to the 70% turnout of harvesters that week as against a turnout of 62% in the second crop of 2022, resulting in the estate’s increased ability to supply canes to the factory.
The release had also stated that workers were continuing to respond positively to a better-than-expected cane yield in the field and an incentive scheme that was motivating greater productivity. Those positive factors, it pointed out, contributed to the estate’s achievement of its target for the second time, and would boost the income of workers at the Albion Estate. They earned an additional day’s pay, which was tax-free, through GuySuCo’s Weekly Production Incentive (WPI) programme.
Albion/Port Mourant Estate Manager Yudhisthira Mana had said that this achievement was possible due to exceptional teamwork and comradery. “Our success is attributed to our team’s unwavering commitment and the implementation of advanced harvesting techniques. Addi-tionally, favourable weather conditions have played a pivotal role in our recent accomplishments. We are immensely proud of our achievements and look forward to continuing our pursuit of excellence to achieve this crop’s target,” he was quoted as saying.
According to the release, the Albion/
Port Mourant estate was slated to produce 47% of the overall expected sugar production in the second crop of 2023 to meet the annual target of 60,858 metric tonnes.
Yesterday, sources told the Sunday Stabroek that the industry had already achieved 42,000 tonnes of sugar and was working ahead to the annual target, which was expected to be met as the quality of sugarcane in the field was extremely good.
On Friday, the Ministry of Agriculture in a statement confirmed that Rose Hall Estate had produced just around 100 tonnes of sugar since its reopening last week and as such the estate was also expected to play a role in achieving the annual target.
Contacted yesterday, Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha told the Sunday Stabroek that in keeping with President Irfaan Ali saying that sugar is here to stay, they are working around the clock to see progress in the industry.
He explained that after the Rose Hall Estate was restarted some issues were noticed and it was stopped so that they could be dealt with. Mustapha pointed out that that was to be expected given that the factory had to be rebuilt after the closure by the APNU/AFC.
Furthermore, he stressed the importance of the estate to the economy of the community and the region by extension, which, he said, was too big to ignore and must be maintained.
