Associated Press reporter Alan Sayre, based in New Orleans, reports on the new LSR cane sugar refinery currently under construction at Gramercy, Louisiana. The Washington Post and ABC Business News are among the national media to carry the story:
NEW ORLEANS — After years of fighting storms and flat prices, Louisiana sugar cane growers at the heart of a $2 billion industry are hoping for better financial times as farmers and the food industry unite to get the product from the fields to the consumer in a direct line.
Construction is under way on a $190 million sugar refinery near Gramercy, northwest of New Orleans, that will be able to produce 1 million tons of sugar annually. In a joint venture with two food giants – Cargill Inc. and the Imperial Sugar Co. – growers say the refinery, expected to begin processing in 2011, will give them a steady market for Louisiana cane that will support higher prices.
It’s the first time state growers have been involved in such a field-to-consumer venture. For Cargill, it will provided the company’s first entry into the processed sugar market.
“Sugar is a critical ingredient to the customers we already serve. It enables us to work more effectively with a broader base of customers on ingredient innovations,” Cargill spokeswoman Nicole Reichert said.
Also a partner in the refinery is Sugar Growers and Refiners Inc., a marketing cooperative consisting of 700 Louisiana cane growers and eight cane mills.
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