Insight Focus
- Planting has now been completed thanks to recent drier weather.
- The Mulgrave Mill has crushed around 914,000 tonnes to date with the completion date estimated for the end of November.
- The outlook is positive for next year’s crop as preparations are already underway to prepare the soil.
What are you up to on the farm at present?
Finally, El Nino has kicked in and it’s an exciting time on the farm with all our farming operations now running at full steam ahead. We have top-dressed and fertilised the early plant cane and the outlook is really positive.
Our planting is now finished thanks to the recent drier weather, although it’s about four weeks behind schedule due to the previous wet weather. Overall, the growers around the district are in a good frame of mind and focused on preparing the crop for next year.
What stage is your cane crop at?
Harvesters are in the field working hard, with the mills operating exceptionally well. The Mulgrave Mill has crushed around 914,000 tonnes to date, which is about 75% of the crop for the area. The projected finish date is November 29, which is exceptional considering the bad weather at the start of the season.
Overall, we are content with the crop’s yield but a bit disappointed with the Commercial Cane Sugar percentage (CCS), as it has levelled off and is no longer climbing due to the age of the crop. However, due to the current high sugar price, optimism is high.
What are you doing differently this year?
We had a recent setback that meant the fertiliser tractor was out of action for about two weeks with a mechanical transmission issue. That’s an added expense we have had to deal with, which is a bit frustrating.
What are you most proud of this year?
I am happy with our clean seed preparation. We have planted the tissue culture in the ground, and it is now being irrigated, and is looking really good. As far as next year’s crop goes, we are feeling very optimistic.
