Australia - Weather hits sugar industry

The chance to plant this autumn is slipping away for many cane growers in Queensland, because it's been too wet.

In the state's north, canegrowers are counting the cost of Cyclone Ului, which hit the area between Proserpine and Mackay over the weekend.

They believe the full impact on this year's crop mightn't be known until harvest time in late June.

Agricultural extension officer Andrew Burrows says rain has done more good than bad, but it'll be difficult for growers to plant at the moment.

"In some cases a lot of growers have said they're not going to plant, because they don't have the time to get the ground ready," he says.

"And productivity boards are struggling, because they'll have all this cane and no-one will be able to take it, and they themselves won't be able to cut to supply growers with the new varieties

source: meattradenewsdaily