838832 tonnes of sugarcane and 77972 tonnes of sugar have been produced in 2011 in Mauritius

The 2011 sugar harvest continues in the factories in the north and west.

On July 30, about 21 per cent of the area had already been harvested. Moreover, some 838,832 tonnes of sugarcane and 77,972 tonnes of sugar have been produced in 2011.

During the months of June and July, the weather conditions were normal. Since October 2010, cumulative rainfall of 92 per cent of the long-term average was recorded.

The first observations from across the whole country were quite disappointing for early June.

With the prolonged dry period until December 2010, sugarcane had a terrible start. At the end of January 2011, it was only 64 per cent in terms of average height compared to the previous year.

Despite favourable weather conditions that have prevailed since early 2011, the condition of sugarcane has not improved.

At the end of July, productivity in the fields was at an average of 73.9 tonnes of cane per hectare, while it was at 83.0 tonnes last year. The situation is particularly difficult in the central, east and south. Till date, sugar production in 2011 is estimated to be at 390,000 tonnes, against the initial forecast of 420,000 tonnes. Projected sugarcane production will be around 3.85 million tonnes and the expected extraction rate should be around 10 per cent.

In 2010,a total of 4.36 million tonnes of cane were harvested and produced 452,473 tonnes of sugar with an extraction rate of 10.37 per cent.

This second estimate of the crop was established at the end of the meeting of the Crop Estimate Coordinating Committee held on August 5, 2011. It was chaired by the Chamber of Agriculture.

The Crop Estimate Coordinating Committee includes the Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute, the sugar factories, the Farmers Service Corporation, the Mauritius Sugar Authority and the Ministry of Agro-Industry