The first raw sugar of the 2021 season has shipped out of the Port of Mackay.

Local growers looked on as raw sugar produced at Wilmar’s Plane Creek and Proserpine mills was loaded into the MV Mareeba bulk carrier.

It was destined for Sugar Australia’s Yarraville Refinery in Melbourne where it will be processed into a wide range of sugar products for the iconic CSR Sugar brand and for Australian food and beverage customers.

The Mackay Port tour was organised by Wilmar’s Plane Creek Grower Marketing Consultant Angus McKerrow and Mackay Sugar Terminal Mechanical Supervisor Hamish Beveridge to give cane growers greater insight into the sugar supply chain that begins on their farms and ends on supermarket shelves in Australia and overseas.

Mr McKerrow said nine growers from the Plane Creek region attended the port tour on 20 July.

“The growers were excited to witness raw sugar that originated from their local mill and potentially, their farms, being loaded into a ship.

“It was the first shipment for the 2021 season, so it was also about being present for that milestone: the first of the new season sugar to leave the region.”

Mr McKerrow said the growers got an appreciation for the processes around storing and loading sugar, and the procedures around quality sampling.

“The logistics of handling sugar – from delivery, through to storage and loading – are quite complex, and there are a lot of controls in place to maintain the quality of that sugar from port to port.

“Many thanks goes to Mackay Terminal Manager Mike Panke and Hamish Beveridge for facilitating such a great tour.”