The sugar cane industry was for centuries the backbone of the Barbadian economy. It was introduced to the island by the early settlers and provided Britain with sugar, rum and molasses.
All of the plantations, which were in the main owned in Britain and operated by slave labor, grew sugar cane and most of them had their own mill for grinding the cane, extracting the juice and processing it. The raw sugar was shipped to Britain to be refined into various products in the process growing that country's economy and making the British plantation owners rich.
The tradition of producing sugar continued to the point where, although the cost of production exceeded the selling price on the world market, the industry was still maintained as a foreign exchange earner. Several agreements and arrangements with Britain and the European Economic Community enabled the Barbadian sugar industry to continue but it has now reached the stage where the EEC has drastically reduced the price it is prepared to pay for raw sugar as it moves to protect its own beet sugar industry.
The steady decline and the need to find economic solutions have led to the number of factories being reduced to two, Andrews in St. Joseph and 'Portvale' in St. James. This is a far cry from the years when as many as 10 factories were spread around the island.
The Barbados Agricultural Management Company Limited manages and operates the sugar industry. It looks after the grinding of the canes, the refining of the sugar and the marketing and sale of the product. The 'BAMC' is now planning new strategy for Barbadian sugar which includes the production of specialty types. These new products will carry the Barbadian sugar trade mark and tradition and will be aimed at certain niche markets.
One of the major changes in the sugar industry over the years has been the move from being labor intensive to full mechanization. In the past cane was harvested manually with men and women cutting the tall stalks, piling them into bundles to be loaded on to trucks and carts to be taken to the factories.
Because of what most people saw as the hard work, the number of people employed in the fields has steadily declined to the point where workers from other islands had to be brought in to assist in harvesting the crop. The sugar industry in Barbados has now come full circle from being labor intensive to the point where 90 percent of the crop is harvested mechanically. With only two sugar factories in operation, the BAMC has set up a system of transporting cane from all parts of the island.
A number of trans-loading stations have been established to serve as collecting points. Two former factories, Carrington in St. Philip and 'Bulkeley' in St. George have been utilized for this purpose and it's from these two points that the canes are then loaded onto large trucks to be taken to Andrews and 'Portvale' sugar factories. The crisis in the sugar industry is now such that Government and the owners of the industry, who are now nearly all Barbadians, are contemplating growing cane for purposes other than sugar production.
Consideration is being given to the growing of certain high fiber canes which can be used for fuel production and for making board to be used in the construction industry. To some people the sugar cane is more than just the base product for sugar. Some say the lush green fields of cane especially when it is in arrow is a beautiful sight which once seen is never forgotten.
The crop, because it is a grass, also helps to retain the top soil and so maintain and enhance the ground. Crop time in Barbados is no secret for a drive through the country will reveal the fields being harvested and trucks and carts, drawn by tractors, moving steadily along the roads. The smell of sugar also permeates the air as the soft breezes take the sweet aroma miles away from the factories.
The Barbadian sugar industry may not be reaping sweets at this time but it is certainly a major part of history and has been the foundation on which the economy has been built.
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