An Khe Sugar Factory enters new crushing season

GIA LAI An Khe Sugar Factory officially entered the 2025 - 2026 crushing season, starting to purchase sugarcane from farmers in 15 communes and wards in the western region of Gia Lai province.

On December 2, An Khe Sugar Factory (a branch of Quang Ngai Sugar Joint Stock Company) officially operated the sugarcane pressing line, opening to purchase sugarcane from farmers in 15 communes and wards in the western region of Gia Lai province to enter the 2025-2026 pressing season.

According to Mr. Nguyen Hoang Phuoc, Deputy Director of An Khe Sugar Factory, the factory is purchasing 1 million VND/ton of pure sugarcane with 10% sugar content in the field. In addition, farmers are also supplemented with sugarcane price at 20,000 VND/ton of pure sugarcane (through factory scales) after completing the contract. The additional amount of sugarcane price upon completing the contract will be paid after the end of the crushing season, if both parties determine that there is no violation of the contract and the committed contents. In addition, farmers are also supported with an average transportation fee of 160,000 VND from the field to the factory depending on the distance.

On December 2, An Khe Sugar Factory officially entered the 2025 - 2026 crushing season. Photo: V.D.T.

“With the current purchase price, after deducting costs, each hectare of sugarcane growers earn a profit of about 25 - 30 million VND. In the 2025 - 2026 crushing season, at its peak, An Khe Sugar Factory will crush 18,000 tons of sugarcane per day, and is expected to purchase all sugarcane from farmers by the end of May 2026,” said Mr. Phuoc.

Mr. Phuoc added that during the pressing season, the factory will focus on pressing at maximum capacity, first of all, dealing with the sugarcane areas that have fallen after the storm. In addition, the factory will coordinate with local authorities to organize propaganda for sugarcane growers to harvest close to the base, cut the sugarcane in the same direction as the sugarcane falls to limit shaking the base to preserve the sugarcane base, and at the same time focus on mechanical plowing and plowing, and proper care for the sugarcane to recover. The factory will continue to invest in timely seeds and fertilizers to maintain the sugarcane base and expand the raw material area, ensuring the sugarcane area to serve the following year.

An Khe Sugar Factory is purchasing 1 million VND/ton of pure sugarcane with 10% sugar content in the field. Photo: V.D.T.

“Storm No. 13 caused many areas of sugarcane to fall down, growing shoots and stems, so when taking sugarcane seeds, farmers must choose sugarcane patches that do not grow shoots and stems or have them but in small proportions. When sugarcane falls, it will be covered with mud and soil, making it susceptible to disease, so before planting, farmers need to treat it and soak it in lime water at a ratio of 3/100 to ensure that sugarcane seeds grow and develop well,” Mr. Nguyen Hoang Phuoc advised.

According to Mr. Phuoc, in the recent storm No. 13, most of the 36,000ha sugarcane raw material area of ​​An Khe Sugar Factory was flattened, affecting the productivity and quality of sugarcane. Specifically, the productivity decreased by 7-10 tons compared to the previous crop, and the sugar content decreased by 0.5 to 1 CCS/ton due to the sugarcane falling. "With the above damages, sugarcane growers in the west of Gia Lai lost about 300-400 billion VND in income, and the factory's revenue will also be affected by an equivalent amount because the sugar recovery efficiency will not be as good as in previous years," Mr. Phuoc shared.

On December 19, 2025, An Khe Sugar Factory will start construction to increase its capacity from 18,000 to 25,000 tons of sugarcane per day. Photo: V.D.T.

Sugarcane fields that have been damaged by storms are difficult to harvest mechanically, so growers must harvest manually. An Khe Sugar Factory instructs sugarcane field owners to sign harvesting contracts now to be proactive, and at the same time, sugarcane field owners need to "raise" many groups of workers so that sugarcane harvesting is not delayed due to lack of workers. Sugarcane growers need to take advantage of local labor to ensure labor prices are maintained, and at the same time, ensure sugarcane harvesting is on schedule so that the factory has enough raw materials to produce 18,000 tons of sugarcane per day.

“With the above solutions, it will help sugarcane producers continue to develop their sugarcane growing areas stably, reduce damage caused by storm No. 13 and ensure the end of the sugarcane harvest by the end of May 2026. At the same time, it will continue to ensure stable development, providing enough raw materials when An Khe Sugar Factory starts construction, increasing its capacity from 18,000 tons of sugarcane/day to 25,000 tons of sugarcane/day and increasing the capacity of An Khe Biomass Power Plant from 95 MW to 135 MW on December 19, 2025,” said Mr. Nguyen Hoang Phuoc, Deputy Director of An Khe Sugar Factory (Gia Lai).

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/nha-may-duong-an-khe-buoc-vao-nien-vu-ep-moi-d787934.html