Introduced in Mauritius in 1639, sugarcane was identified as the only major crop to resist the cyclonic conditions prevailing in the region. In spite of various attempts to diversify the agricultural sector, sugarcane stood the test of time and became the sole major cash crop and the backbone of the Mauritian economy for decades. Currently, sugarcane is still cultivated in over 80% of agricultural land and sugar represents around 14% of the value of total domestic exports. However, the Mauritius sugar industry is now faced with unprecedented challenges which arise as a result of trade liberalization world-wide, the EU sugar reform, the opening of the EU market to other non-ACP economies and the EU's decision to abolish production quotas by September 2017. The implementation of the new EU regime is having a far-reaching impact on ACP suppliers, with the threat of closure and wiping out of the whole sugar industry in those countries. The objectives of this project were to:
a) Assess the performance of selected high biomass varieties in marginal areas,
b) Evaluate the stability of high fibre clones across environments and successive harvests,
c) Assess the physiological aspects of above-ground biomass accumulation,
d) Determine the possibilities of harvesting year-round fast growing high biomass clones
Keywords
Energy canes,Bioenergy,Marginal lands,Adaptation,Year-round harvest