Mubarakganj Sugar Mill Limited (MSM) has exceeded target of cane supply during the current crushing season.
Earlier, the mill set a supply target of 1,30,000 metric tonnes (MT) of sugarcane for the ongoing crushing season.
The mill has already crushed 1,32,000 MT of sugarcane in 86 days after the crushing season started on December 07 last year.
The mill set a target to keep the mill operative for 92 days in this crushing season.
The mill has been running smoothly with almost no mechanical breakdown so far.
The mill authority hoped to procure an additional five MT of sugarcane for crushing in the six days left.
Director (MD) of MSM Md. Anwar Kabir said the mill set production target of 9,840 tonnes of sugar targeting 8.0 per cent recovery rate.
However, the mill has already produced 6,800 tonnes of sugar. And the total produced amount of sugar is expected to come to 7,000 tonnes this time.
The mill authority said the recovery percentage proved ambitious.
Varieties are a great problem to achieve the targeted recovery percentage.
The varieties of sugarcane invented by Bangladesh Sugar Research Institute (BSRI) several years ago are now containing less sugar though their acreages are good.
So farmers are getting benefited but the mill cannot attain its targeted recovery percentage.
Anwar Kabir said, "Even if we take initiative to replace the existing varieties it will take three to four years to do it."
Sugarcane farmers expressed tremendous dissatisfaction as the mill authority failed to pay a large amount of money to the farmers.
The mill authority paid the growers only half of the total money so far, they alleged.
A farmer of Rawtail village under Jhenidah Sadar said that they were in great trouble as their dues were not paid by the mill authority leaving them in dire straits.
The farmers could not pay money to the labourers, vehicle owners and others concerned.
The cane farmers are also facing trouble taking care of 'ratoons' for want of money.
Besides, shortfall in procurement of TSP fertiliser resulted in a hindrance to expansion of sugarcane cultivation under the mill zone.
The mill authority rceived 634 tonnes of TSP in this cultivation season against the target of 900 tonnes.
