Sugar refineries in central region face cane shortage

Fourteen sugar refineries in central and central highlands regions are facing a shortage of sugarcane for processing, Vietnam Sugar and Sugarcane Association President Vo Thanh Dang said Friday.

The shortage will cause competition among the refineries in the region to buy cane when the harvest starts, he said. The region’s sugarcane farms have dwindled by 4,600 hectares to only 67,500 hectares since last year. Refineries promised to pay between VND460,000 (US$26) and VND470,000 per ton at the beginning of the crop and will adjust the price according to the market price. Reported by Hien Cu