Our Islands
Our Islands
Farm Husbandry
We have been providing awareness and educating the farmers on the types of fertilizers to use and in what amount. The variety of cane is also a topic shared among the farmers. The field division of FSC is responsible for the delivery of farm advisory and extension services to cane farmers.
We have a farming calendar which is scheduled to be followed and these are:
1. Cane Planting
Cane planting season is in two windows. The first and major is from April – May when fallow planting takes place. Land preparation should be initiated at least 0ne month before planting. Field staffs collect soil samples after the first ploughing to analyse soil fertility and health in terms of P, K and pH values
2. Crop Nutriency
-
Blend A (mostly phosphorus) should be applied at the rate of 2 – 4 bags per hectare in the drills during planting.
-
Blend B fertilizers should be applied as a top-dress application at 12 – 16 bags per hectare at the end of the germination period, around 4 – 6 after planting.
-
Blend C fertilizer should be applied on young ratoon crops.
3. Soil Health
-
Sugarcane grows best in soil in the range of 5.5 to 6.5 pH.
-
Where the soil is deemed acidic (below 5.5 pH), liming should be incorporated into the soil, preferably at the time of planting.
-
Depending on the clay content of the soil, it would require 1 – 2.5 tonnes per hectare of lime to improve the soil pH by 1.0 unit.
4. Crop Protection
Crop protection plays an vital role towards the growth of the sugar canes plants. It is essential to protect the cane plants from the very beginning to be able to maximise the harvest. These will benefit both the farmers and the sugar industry. In order to help the farmers in protecting the crop, FSC has taken few steps to overcome issues such as “Disease Control”, “Fires” and “Natural Disaster “faced by the farmers.
5. Disease Control
The Sugar Research Institute of Fiji conducts the monitoring and screening of sugarcane diseases in Fiji. Major diseases of sugarcane in Fiji are:
-
Fiji leaf gall
-
Downy mildew
-
Ratoon stunting disease
6. Fires
Cane burning is a contentious issue for the industry.While our field staffs are at the forefront of anti-burning campaigns, every case of burning will have to be handled according to the Master Award.
Harvesting Season 2023
Cane Payment Information
The schemes encourage growers to deliver cane regularly throughout the crushing season without loss of income due to cane maturity being outside of the peak sugar content. The scheme compensates cane growers for delivering cane at the beginning and end of the crushing season (outside Peak Sugar). Such schemes are a feature of cane payment systems in Australia, Jamaica, Mauritius and South Africa. The adoption of a quality-based cane Payment system for the Fijian Sugar industry will deliver the following benefits:
-
Improved Grower/Grower equity.
-
Better utilization of milling capacity.
-
Group harvesting possible without Grower/Grower equity issues.
-
Potential for expansion of crop size within a mill area or across the group.
-
Potential for extended season length.
Types Of Cane Payment:
Schedule of Cane Delivery Cut-off
2023 Season - All Mills
Crop Information
We have been providing awareness and educating the farmers on the types of fertilizers to use and in what amount. The variety of cane is also a topic shared among the farmers. The field division of FSC is responsible for the delivery of farm advisory and extension services to cane farmers.
Cane Varieties
Transportation
FSC have also been able to help the farmers in facilitating with the harvesting and transportation costs. FSC’s Field Division is responsible for the orderly and efficient harvest and delivery of sugarcane from the field to the mill.
FSC owns and operates the entire 300km of railway infrastructure free of charge. FSC will be introducing lorries and mechanical harvesters to complement its existing fleet of vehicles. FSC launched its tractor and implements fleet. A total of thirty tractors and complementing implements was distributed to FSC field sectors nationally.