Bad weather during the first half of 2009, low cane yields and poor worker turnout are among the factors to be blamed for the significant reduction in sugar production during the first seven months of the year but the agri sector has seen a big boost in rice export earnings.
An assessment of the “local situation” relative to production in the agricultural sector provided by the Ministry of Agriculture states that sugar production at the end of July this year reached 84,141 tonnes compared with 108,545 tonnes during the same period last year. The report says, however, that “initiatives have been put in place to improve productivity for the second crop including the use of outside contractors to accelerate rehabilitation and land conversion. “In spite of lower levels of production in 2009 the Corporation was able to deliver its quota obligations,” the report said.
The report indicates that rice exports for the first six months of this year totalled 147,034 tonnes, valued at US$68,551,104 compared with US$64,035,358 for the same period last year. Production for the first rice crop this year reached 160,870 tonnes compared with the projected yield of 125,000 tonnes. The second crop sowing has been completed with 70,538.81 hectares sown as compared to a target of 60,500 hectares.
Meanwhile, the report also says that total timber and plywood production for the year, up to the end of July, increased by 16.2 per cent, to 209,498m3 compared with 206,166m3 for the same period last year. The period yielded 39,718m3 of Sandalwood, an increase of 19.62 per cent over that recorded over the corresponding period in 2008. The Ministry of Agriculture report also records increases in production volume of other species and products including Splitwood (mainly logs) which recorded a whopping production increase of 90.26 per cent. Production of Logs, Roundwood and Plywood fell by 2.71 per cent, 7.14 per cent and 26.5 per cent, respectively.
The report points to a reduction in the total value of forest exports for the period from US$30.17m last year to US$24.33m this year. Total export volume of timber and plywood for January to July this year is 58,755m3 compared with 91.477m3 for the same period in 2008.
The report says that over the review period ‘export market analyses’ indicate that Latin America and the Caribbean accounted for US$9.41m or 38.67 per cent of revenue earned by Guyana from wood and wood products exports while $US8.74m or 35.9 per cent of revenue was secured from exports to the Asia/Pacific region. The industry also had significant market success in the United States where it secured 12 per cent of its export earnings and Europe which provided 10 per cent of revenue from wood and wood products exports. Other smaller markets were found in South America and Africa.
The report says that most wood products benefited from price increases with logs recording a 20 per cent price increase. Sandalwood, Splitwood and Roundwood benefited from price increases of 10 per cent, 26 per cent and 41 per cent, respectively while plywood recorded a 3 per cent price decline.
