Plane Creek Produces

By Kevin Borg, Chairman, CANEGROWERS Mackay

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 The Plane Creek milling area produces sugar cane as economically and sustainably, and equal or better quality than any region along the Queensland coastline. And that is something to celebrate!
200 people in The Plane Creek growing community came together at Koumala Community Hall last Friday evening (May 31) for the annual Plane Creek Productivity Awards, presented by Plane Creek Productivity Services Ltd (PCPSL).
While many of the awards are based on who is producing the highest tonnes of sugar per hectare (TSH), there are also awards that acknowledge excellence in harvesting performance, sustainability practices, and emerging talent and leadership among younger growers and harvesters across the district.
To determine the overall district productivity award winners, there are awards for the growers producing highest TSH in each of the 13 zones across Plane Creek. This data then tells who the Best Producer of the Season and winner of the Arthur Gardner Shield is; the Best Producer over five years; and the Cane Growing Excellence Award, which goes to the grower highest above average in their Zone. The grower with the Highest Average Relative CCS is also acknowledged.
You might be thinking “What’s the difference between TSH and CCS?  TSH -Tonnes of sugar per hectare is the total tonnes of sugar made for each hectare on the farm, usually taken as an average across the farm. CCS – or Commercial Cane Sugar- is the measure in percentage of the sucrose that is able to be extracted from a grower’s supplied cane. It’s a number worked from a sampling and analysis system at the mill and will vary for the grower across the season, depending on the time of the season (cool, dry weather = higher CCS), the variety, and soil conditions in the paddock. 
Productivity is one of the most important parts of farming- it drives profitability, but celebrating the growers who can really produce a great crop is important. No-one gets into growing cane to win awards, but there is a lot to learn from growers with high productivity achieved within sustainable systems. It makes you think, as a farmer: what can I learn and do better myself? How can I achieve results like that also? As an industry, we are trying to produce more but with less inputs. If someone is achieving good results sustainably, then there is something to learn there, it gives us something to take note of, and aspire to. It’s the start of a conversation between growers about how we can improve productivity.
The event also gives local businesses the opportunity to highlight their part in the process of producing a crop by sponsoring the awards. We would like to thank all those sponsors along with the Koumala State School P&C for their great catering and excellent decoration of the hall on the night. 

SIDEBAR BOX- Winners list
Major Awards:
Arthur Gardner Shield: Best Producer for the Season - Hindle & Co Family Trust (16.37 TSH)
Best Producer over 5 years: Average of best farms over 5 years - FG & JR Axiak (15.64 TSH)
Cane Growing Excellence Award - FG & JR Axiak (15.72 TSH – 31% above Mt Christian Zone Average)
Highest Average Rel. CCS by Farm – Jackson’s Farming (15.59 CCS)
Next Generation Grower – Jake Antoney Galea
Best Harvesting Group - Gerard Axiak
Jim Pedersen Sustainable Management Award – WF Garnham and Son
Zone Winners:
Plane Creek – PD and MM McDougall (9.82 TSH)
Dawlish – JFM & R Muscat (13.01 TSH)
Main Line – Quattromani Farming (13.51 TSH)
Cliftonville – Jake Antoney Galea (13.11 TSH)
Yukan Zone – MP & MM Borg (13.68 TSH)
Koumala Zone – Sangal Holdings (14.62TSH)
Bolingbroke Zone – MR &TJ Sleeman (12.65 TSH)
Turnors Paddock Zone – KA & HM Malone (14.69 TSH)
Mt Christian Zone – FG & JR Axiak (15.72 TSH)
Ilbilbie Zone – JJ &JM Quattromani (13.54 TSH)
West Hill Zone – Hindle & Co Family Trust (16.37 TSH)
Carmila West Zone - Hindle & Co Family Trust (14.6 TSH)
Carmila Zone - Hindle & Co Family Trust (14.37 TSH)

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CANEGROWERS Mackay Chairman Kevin Borg and District Manager Michelle Martin.

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