Sugar industry leaders mark start of harvest season with defense of cane burning

Citing “mountains” of air quality data and public health records, representatives from South Florida’s public health field and the sugar industry on Wednesday struck back against opponents of cane burning, an industry practice that sugarcane growers deem necessary to bringing the crop to market in Florida.

Judy Sanchez, a spokeswoman for U.S. Sugar, referenced legal threats made by organizations such as the Sierra Club and characterized them as nothing more than an attempt to “disrupt our business operations.”

Sanchez was joined by Pat Dobbins, a former medical officer for the Florida Department of Health in Hendry and Glades Counties, who also raised doubts about arguments that are being made in an attempt to link cane burning to negative health outcomes.

According to Dobbins, the health community is “unanimous in agreeing that cane burning does not pose a threat to the health of the communities near where it occurs.” Dobbins pointed to the state’s regulatory requirements for cane burning and local monitoring, which show South Florida’s agricultural areas are “as clean as any other part of the state.”

When asked if alternative methods to prepare the crop for harvest could be used in Florida, Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative spokesperson Barbara Miedema defended the annual practice of burning leaves off of sugarcane stalks. According to Miedema, removing leaves would be harmful to the region’s nutrient-rich muck soil, which is essential to the success of farming sugarcane.

The news conference coincided with the start of the 2015-16 sugarcane harvest season. The industry is expecting the production of 16.67 million tons of sugarcane, which will then be refined to produce an estimated 2 million tons of sugar.

Hendry County Commissioner Janet Taylor warned against legal action from sugarcane industry opponents. According to Taylor, these opponents “are jeopardizing the ability of local farmers to continue providing for their families and threatening the jobs and income of many other families in our community.”

During the news conference, Sanchez echoed Taylor’s concerns about the economy.

“Farmers’ greatest assets are clean air, water and land, and it is ridiculous and irresponsible to think that we would do anything to jeopardize any of that,” said Sanchez.