B.S.C.F.A Wants Fair Trade Money

Meanwhile, the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association is turning to the courts over the issue of Fairtrade premiums, aiming to reclaim what they believe is rightfully theirs. The association claims they haven’t received the appropriate Fairtrade payments for several years and is seeking a resolution to the dispute with the involved sugar companies, ASR/BSI and Tate and Lyle. Alfredo Ortega shared how much they’re looking forward to collecting, while Mac McLoughlin pointed out that the association’s issue is actually with their parent company, Tate and Lyle.

 

Alfredo Ortega, Chairman, Committee of Management, B.S.C.F.A, Orange Walk Branch

“For the past two years now, we can see three years we have not. The B-S-C-F-E has not been getting any premium in regards to our can being delivered to the mill. And we, in regards to the regulations, we  comply with the regulation. We have our certification. We are not suspended. We passed the audit that has been done to us and nevertheless, we have not been getting our premium from since 2021. So, we are awaiting that, um, we were trying to negotiate that with BSIT and like, but it came out futile. We didn’t went through to nothing. So that is why we have it in court now.  We are expecting that, um, something positive come out of that.”

 

Marion Ali

“How much are you expecting out of this premium?”

 

Alfredo Ortega

“Well, every year it’s in the vicinity of three million, three point five million, depending on the amount of sugar being sold on the Fairtrade certification.  So, it’s two years that we have and plus this past crop that we have not got nothing. So, if we include all three.”

 

Mac McLoughlin, General Manager, A.S.R/B.S.I

“Fair trade is between, you know, the associations and Tate and Lyle Sugars, which is the body that sells the fair-trade sugar and pays the farmers for it. So it’s really nothing to do with BSI.”

 

Marion Ali

“The farmers tend to disagree with you on that.”

 

Mac McLoughlin

“Well, it’s the truth. I mean, we don’t sell fairtrade. Well, we sell sugar that’s Fairtrade eligible, but we don’t actually market the sugar as Fairtrade. And, back to when Fairtrade started, it was long before ASR arrived in Belize. I think it was 2008. It’s always been Tate and Lyle paying the farmers the premiums.”

 

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