FROM SUGAR PRODUCTION TO BIOMASS UTILISATION: THE REFORM PROCESS TO ENSURE THE VIABILITY OF THE MAURITIAN SUGAR CANE INDUSTRY

摘要

Since 1975. Mauritius, as a member of the African-Caribbean-Pacific (ACP) group of countries, has, through the Sugar Protocol of the LOME Convention, been benefiting from high preferential prices for its sugar exports to the European Union. With the threat of a substantial cut in the preferential prices as from 2006, the Mauritian government in consultation with all stakeholders, implemented in 2001, the Sugar Sector Strategic Plan (SSSP) 2001-2005 to reform the sugar industry so as to ensure the long-term viability. In essence, the plan calls for factory centralisation (from 14 to 7 or 8), rightsizing of the labour force, further generation of electricity from bagasse, improvement of value-added through co-product development, and establishment of a comprehensive R&D programme to take full advantage of biotechnology and cane biomass utilisation. To-date, the number of factories has been brought down from 14 to 11. By 2007, only 7 centralised factories would be operational. The rightsizing of labour force has been successfully achieved with the disposal of 8000 workers through a socially acceptable voluntary retirement scheme (VRS). With the centralisation of factories, the production of electricity from bagasse cum coal would be boosted up. Thus, by 2010, the sugar industry's share of supply to the national grid would be raised from the current 43% to 71%. Plans to further tap value addition from existing products such as special and organic sugars, ethanol, rum from cane juice and from new ones like sucrochemicals have already been critically examined. Research in sugar cane crop improvement, agronomy, biotechnology, and processes at factory level initiated in the wake of the plan will in the short to medium term be beneficial to the industry at large as it will either lead to cost reduction or productivity enhancement. In the context of diversifying away from sugar, the land conversion scheme as spelled out in the SSSP 2001-2005, allows the sugar industry to venture into economic activities like tourism and real estate development, etc. On the basis of progress achieved so far, the Mauritian sugar industry will, by the end of the reform period, be definitely transformed into a highly viable sugar cane industry positively impacting on other spheres on the economy.