Ja: Cane strike haemorrhaging dollars

THE SUGAR Company of Jamaica (SCJ) is reporting losses of $30 million, as a result of the week-long strike at the Long Pond Estates in Trelawny.

The SCJ management has also pointed to additional losses in the six-digit range, the result of spoilage of cane juice stored at the factory, downtime at the plant, and revenue paid to factory workers who have remained idle because of the disruption in operations caused by the cane cutters' strike.

Stating that there was uncertainity as to when the cane cutters would resume, Livingstone Morrison, chief executive officer at the SCJ and of the Trelawny Sugar Co., said yesterday that "all the canes on the factory compound have been spoilt. When you add it all up, we are suffering at least $30 million in lost revenue from spoilt canes, and cane juice."