BELIZE CITY, Wed. Dec. 1, 2021 — Today, the Government of Belize issued a statement on the current impasse between the growers at the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association (BSCFA) and the company which mills that cane, Belize Sugar Industry Limited (BSI/ASR) — a stalemate that, if not soon resolved, could adversely impact the yield of the upcoming season which starts in a little over two weeks and could have a huge dampening effect on the overall economy. The current commercial agreement between the two entities expires in January 2022, just weeks after the start of the harvest and the new season, and in light of the critical juncture in the season, the Briceño administration is asking cane farmers to postpone their negotiations for a new agreement for 6 months in order to secure the much-needed revenue expected to be generated through this year’s sugar production.

The release from GOB states, “It was clear to Cabinet that it is unlikely that an agreement will be reached before the start of the crop in December 2021.” While the government acknowledges that a new agreement is needed between the BSCFA and BSI/ASR, it says that it is critical that the 2021-2022 sugar cane harvest starts on time, and that continuing negotiations to arrive at the terms of a new agreement would likely cause a delay.

“In the interim, Cabinet believes that the current Commercial Agreement should be extended by the parties for not more than six months,” the release from Cabinet states.

This would extend the timeframe for the resolution of differences between the two entities and the formulation of mutually acceptable terms until June 2022. A delay in the negotiations is not an issue for the millers, since they have expressed satisfaction with the current commercial agreement and do not see the need for any major changes in the terms of that agreement. The members of the BSCFA, however, publicly expressed their intention several weeks ago to terminate the agreement after its expiration date and have been calling for a new agreement through which a new revenue-sharing arrangement would be put in place.

The release states, “Cabinet supports and expects that dialogue and negotiations will continue in good faith during the grinding season and is hopeful that a fair and balanced agreement will be reached before the end of June 2022.”

It had been projected that a total of 1,355,324 metric tons of sugar would be produced this season — an increase of over 150K metric tons compared to last year’s production and close to the milling capacity of the Tower Hill Sugar Factory, the GoB release states.

This is the primary reason the government is recommending that the sugar cane harvest be started with or without a new commercial agreement. “Taking into consideration downtime due to mechanical failures, sugar cane quality, and unpredictable weather among other unexpected delays, Cabinet views it as critical that the 2021-2022 sugar cane harvest begins in December 2021 as is programmed regardless of whether or not a new agreement on the Commercial Cane Purchase Agreement is reached between the BSCFA and BSI/ASR,” stated the government in its release.