JAMAICAN SUGAR FUTURE IS ‘PLANTATION WHITE’
At a government consultation with Jamaican Manufacturers and sugar producers convened in Kingston last Thursday with Minister Karl Samuda, Sugar Association of the Caribbean Chairman, Karl James, set out the many advantages for Jamaican manufacturers of using Jamaican ‘plantation white” sugar in their processes:
“Around the world most manufacturers use “plantation white” sugar to make soft drinks, cakes and biscuits. It is a win-win – manufacturers have a local product on their door-step; can pay Jamaican dollars for it; and lock in prices protected from the world market for years ahead. This is how the rest of the world operates – it is crazy to be importing sugar from Guatemala instead of somewhere 20 miles away.”
“To get companies to invest in ‘plantation white’ we do need a minimum of protection from dumped international white refined sugar which every 5-10 years is available on the world market at below the cost of production as part of the price cycle. This destroys any reason to invest in Jamaican sugar if there is no kind of tariff protection in place. We want competition between Caribbean producers to drive prices down and ensure quality and value for manufacturers. We absolutely believe that this can work for everybody – after all it is how every other sugar producing country in the world manages the issue.”
ENDS