The North Coast’s sugar milling season has drawn to a premature close following a lower-than-expected sugarcane yield.

According to industry stakeholder, South African Canegrowers, the Maidstone and Amatikulu sugar mills had already closed for crushing, while Gledhow and Felixton are due to close by the end of the week.

Mills at Sezela (South Coast) and Eston (inland of Durban) had also closed at the time of print.

These closures are earlier than the traditional mid-December end to the season and have been prompted by drier than average conditions and less cane planting as a result of diversification and sugar tax concerns.

SA Canegrowers project that cane production will be down by around 10% this year – from the post-2020 average of 18 million tonnes to less than 17 million.

“The 2024 season’s reduced yield underscores the increasing vulnerability of our industry to climate pressures, particularly for our rain-fed growers,” said SA Canegrowers chairman, Higgins Mdluli.

“While we are fortunate to still meet local demand, the reduced export potential impacts our growers’ income and the broader economy.”

Based on the yield projections, South Africa is expected to produce around 1.9 million tonnes of sugar, which comfortably meets the average domestic demand of 1.5-million tonnes.

Rainfall struggles

According to data from the South African Sugar Research Institute, rainfall levels for 2024 at the Gledhow and Maidstone Mill data stations are both down year-on-year.

Gledhow’s station had recorded 723ml at the end of October, which is the lowest figure since 2019’s mark of 558ml.

Maidstone recorded 805.2ml for the same period, the lowest since 2021’s 804ml.

There are of course many other factors which impact cane yield, but rainfall is crucial for farmers, particularly those on a smaller scale who do not irrigate.

And although the numbers are down, the rainfall has not been critically low.

By way of comparison, the last two drought years on the North Coast in 2014 and 2010 saw just 459.5ml and 341.5ml or rainfall at Gledhow, and 460.5ml and 320.5ml at Maidstone at the end of October. Those two years were the lowest recorded in the 21st century.

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