But will the next crop season begin without the difficulties of the last season? Viewers will remember that there was a very costly protest that members of the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association staged against the mill at the start of the last season.
That's because the millers and the BSCFA were unable to resolve their protracted commercial disagreement, which persists even at this time, an entire year later. The two sides have been attempting to negotiate their way out of another costly fight for the industry. But, all indications are that the process has been like pulling teeth.
We asked the Agriculture Minister about the latest attempts from both sides to negotiate via an independent mediator. He was very careful in his description of the glacial pace of this process:
Jose Mai, Minister of Agriculture
"I believe that even if we do not have an agreement signed, we are going to have a crop starting. I am hoping it is unlikely in my view and I may be wrong and I hope I am wrong, to be it is unlikely that we will have an agreement before the crops starts, the way things are moving at a very snail paste. But I believe that we can have a crop ongoing while mediation and negotiation is ongoing."
Reporter
"Any update on those mediations as of right now."
Jose Mai, Minister of Agriculture
"I don't want to speak much on that, it's very sensitive and its fluid, its moving slowly, so I prefer not to comment on that to avoid misinterpretations or taking things out of context."
