IT'S GO TIME: Cane to be trucked to Gordonvale as from today
FINAL HARVEST
Sugar cane harvesting in the Mossman area is underway this week in the Mossman area, with a fleet of trucks starting to haul the harvest to Mulgrave Mill at Gordonvale.
In what is likely to be the Douglas region’s last cane season ever, the harvest was delayed by wet weather last week but now transport company Bray’s Transport has confirmed it has started moving the cut cane south on the Captain Cook Highway.
Up to 80 per cent of the cane crop in the area is expected to be crushed at MSF’s Mulgrave Mill.
The move follows recent negotiations between farmers, the state government and MSF which firmed up a deal allowing $6 million of an earlier $12.1M state government pledge to be allocated towards transporting the cane to Gordonvale and followed closure of the Mossman Mill, now in liquidation.
Dale Bray of Bray’s Transport told Newsport that the company had advertised for 40 drivers and while most of the positions have been filled, a few more are needed to transport the crop from Mossman and surrounds to Mulgrave Mill.
“We are ready to take up to 300,000 tonnes of cane to Mulgrave,” Mr Bray said.
The Australian Sugar Milling Council (ASMC) expressed delight and relief that the Mossman cane crop was able to be harvested, but at the same time lamented that the closure of Mossman Mill showed a broader set of challenges facing sugar manufacturing.
ASMC CEO Ash Salardini said the challenges in transporting the Mossman cane this year highlighted the need for Federal and Queensland governments to “step up their investment in upgrading Queensland’s cane railway network” which he said provided a huge public good benefit that had been largely neglected by Government over time.
“The significant challenges in transporting Mossman cane should be a reminder that governments should be looking to significantly up their investment in the industry’s freight infrastructure that underpins one of Queensland’s largest freight tasks,” Mr Salardini said.
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