And while the cane farmers and the millers are jointly facing these climate change problems, the new Minister of Agriculture, Jose Mai, said last week Tuesday that these two groups will have to regulated differently when it comes to the sugar quota.
8 days ago, The press asked Mai for his opinion on how much sugar cane the multinational company should be allowed to contribute to the annual crop season's grinding. Because quota is directly tied to revenue bottom lines in the industry, Mai said that the Government will have to step in at some point and put a limit on ASR/BSI.
Yesterday, the press asked ASR's Vice-President of International Relations about that comment. Here's what both sides had to say:
Hon. Jose Mai - Minister of Agriculture
"For ASR, the sky cannot be the limit. At some point, we have the manage the amount of sugar cane that they have planted. The sugar industry in Belize is a small farmer's based industry. If you gobble up everything, then the livelihoods will disappear. We have been elected to look after the livelihoods of the small farmers. So, at some point, the discussion has to be how much can ASR be allowed to grow, in terms of sugar cane."
Reporter
"My understanding of that situation was that it was simply supposed to be for research purposes. And then, it turned into actual cane planting for delivery."
Malcolm (Mac) McLachlan - V.P. International Relations, ASR Group
"When we get to a point where the factory is full of cane, then, we can maybe talk about where that cane should come from. My - I don't know. It happened before my time. But, I think BSI had to get involved with cane production because there wasn't sufficient cane production - and there still isn't - from the farmers. But that said, we have not expanded. There's been a big myth about this for many years, and BSI is expanding its cane production and putting farmers out
of business. It's complete nonsense. We are still delivering more or less the same percentage as we have done all along. And I think, from our perspective, I think we are a cane farmer as well as a miller. Our whole company has started its beginnings - the main ASR company is cane farmers. We're a cane farming business as well as a milling business. And what I find odd sometimes is that there's sometimes - this question comes up, should be able to deliver cane to our own mill? I find that an interesting question."
National Homicides Decrease, City Murders Same
The government agency known as the Belize Crime Observatory has released a completed study of all the homicides for the year 2020. And, the BCO is reporting for the first time since 2013, Belize has registered a murder rate that is below what is considered to be civil war benchmark: we're at 24.33 per 100 thousand inhabitants.
Official statistics released by the police department say that there were 102 murders recorded last year. This represents a reduction of 32 from the previous year when there were 134 murders. That's a decline of 23.88%.
The BCO notes that while it's a marked reduction nationally, Belize City recorded the same number of murders it did back in 2019. There were 47 murders recorded in this major population center in both 2019 and 2020. City murders constituted a higher percentage of the national total last year when compared to 2019.
The BCO says, quote, "The situation improved in Precincts 3 and 4 (the City's northside) but worsened in Precincts 1 and 2 (the City's southside). No murders were recorded in Precinct 4." End quote.
And by the Observatory's count, the Belize District recorded a notable decline in murders. It was a similar picture for the districts of Orange Walk, Cayo, and Toledo. In Corozal and Stann Creek However, there was an increase over the previous year.
