Last night we told you about the potential interim agreement that was on the table for both ASR/BSI and the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association to sign.
Well, it was signed today - and you can call that a kind of Christmas miracle.
This afternoon, the two sides signed the agreement and exchanged documents electronically.
Agriculture Minister Jose Mai and his team shepherded this difficult process through to a temporary resolution. He discussed it with CTV-3 this afternoon:
Jose Mai, Minister of Agriculture
"Yesterday the farmers, the members of BSCFA, the general assembly approved that the leaders of BSCFA sign that one-year agreement with BSI. This morning there was some little misunderstanding, I think as to the definition of what one year is. Amazing, as to what one year is and they finally determine that one year is 12 months and not a crop year and so both parties agreed and signed on the one-year agreement. So, I am happy for that. I think that a lot has been achieved by getting one year."
Reporter
"Why recommending the one year instead of 2 years? How did you manage to sell this to the farmers telling them listen, it is an interim agreement, it is a way forward to start the crop, but let's not take 2, let's take 1."
Jose Mai, Minister of Agriculture
"Because we have to have closure. We cannot be kicking the pan down the road every time. This must be done in one year. In one year, several things will happen; we have to bring in the experts, they have to do an assessment and an analysis. We have to satisfy the farmers, because they believe that the figures are not right. There was a lot of involvement behind the scenes; the Prime Minister was speaking to ASR people, I was talking to the cane farmers, my CEO was also speaking to the ASR. So there was a lot of involvement of other people at the highest level in government, because we realize that it is a very critical matter, it is very important. It is not only the north that's being affected, the country is being affected if the industry goes down or the industry is being affected in some way. So, I think all hands were on deck."
As we told you, if BSI and the three smaller cane producer associations had their way, the 2022/23 sugar crop season would have started last Monday. But now the date is set for next Tuesday, December 27th.
