Fires in Mauritius since 12 October have affected 17,450 tonnes of sugar cane, Agro-Industry Minister Arvin Boolell said on Thursday 15 October, after a meeting with representatives of planters and the sugar industry.
The minister called for burnt cane to be harvested and transported quickly to the mills to limit economic losses. He also called for stronger measures to ensure workers' safety so that activities could continue.
The toll exceeds the some 11,000 tonnes of cane already burnt recorded on the morning of 14 October by the Chamber of Agriculture. For the volumes identified as at that date, the organisation estimated that the sugar still recoverable was between 500 and 800 tonnes, compared with about 1,000 tonnes under normal conditions. Some of the cane had not reached maturity, which reduces the yield at extraction.
The damage also affects ratoon fields recently fertilised, threatening their 2027 harvest, according to the Chamber's statement. Irrigation installations were damaged and need to be restored.
As of 14 October, just under half of the cane harvest expected for 2026 remained to be carried out, out of a total estimated at 2.38 million tonnes. The three sugar mills had resumed normal operations that morning, after an interruption linked to the curfew imposed on the evening of 13 October, the Chamber said.