There are about two months before the start of the sugar cop season and there is still no agreement between the Belize Sugar cane Farmers' Association and the miller, ASR/BSI.
The two sides remain substantially apart on their core differences - and now they have agreed to appoint an outside mediator.
ASR/BSI's Director of Finance, Sean Chavarria said it is their best hope for some kind of breakthrough before December:
Shawn Chavarria, Director of Finance, B.S.I.
"We have agreed to invite an independent mediator to assist the negotiations. We are trying to finalize at the moment the terms of reference of that mediation. What is key is that the mediator is independent and it is mutually agreed by both parties. So, we are hoping that we can finalize that you know very soon, hopefully this week, and then we can embark on that process of getting that mediator to see if we can help narrow the gap, because at the moment there is a wide gap between ourselves and the B.S.C.F.A. We have tried a couple follow up meetings to see if we can get closer on the core issues, but we haven't been able to make progress on the core matters. So, with this we are hoping we can get a bit more forward movement to see if we can get an agreement signed at the start of the next crop which we are aiming for some time the third week of December."
Reporter
"Level of confidence that BSI/ASR has as a company that with a mediator independent one, somebody that comes from outside, not from Belize, you will be able to reach to an agreement before the opening of the new crop season."
Shawn Chavarria, Director of Finance, B.S.I.
"Certainly, that's our thought process going through this, that if we get someone in that can help bridge the gap with each other's positions that you can make some progress on that front. So, we're looking forward to getting the process going and see if they can assist us with getting an agreement sign before the start of the next crop."
Both sides plan to agree to who the mediator will be in the next couple weeks. Currently, they are working on terms of reference.
There is no indication that this is binding mediation.
