Sugarcane
Sugarcane is an important rural industry for Australia, worth $2.5 billion to the economy annually. Approximately 3,700 cane farm businesses grow 30 million tonnes of cane each year. This cane is crushed and processed at 21 Australian sugar mills to produce 4.5 million tonnes of raw sugar and other by-products.
Sugarcane is a ratooning crop that will regrow for up to five or six years before needing to be replanted. Often farmers grow other crops like soybeans, peanuts or horticultural crops to break up the monoculture and assist with soil health.
The complete sugarcane paddock to packet cycle contains multiple steps, from the planting of sugarcane through to the exporting of raw sugar crystals to international markets, or the refining and packaging of sugar for domestic use.
Although ‘raw’ sugar is the main product of Australian sugarcane, a host of other products are made from the sugarcane plant including ethanol, electricity, molasses, mulch, plastics, clothing, and pharmaceuticals.
Thanks to the support of CANEGROWERS, our resources include a paddock-to-product video about sugarcane, a catchy music video titled 'Sugarcane Train,' one engaging 'In the Classroom' episode with a fun activity to learn about sugarcane 'Making Rock Candy', and a free curriculum-aligned educator's resource for Foundation to Year 4 students, focusing on STEAM subjects.
