The Better Sugarcane Initiative

1
The Better Sugarcane Initiative Impacts and
Benefits on the Global Sugarcane Industry

• R Quirk, H Morar, R Perkins,
• G Kingston, W Burnquist

2
Why Sugarcane

• Better Sugarcane or Better Sugar?
• The crop has the impact not the products
• Why the focus on Cane?
• cane is bigger than beet
• beet faced uncertainty during BSI set-up
• concentrate resources for higher impact
• Best or Better Management?
• Constant improvement makes what is now the best
  obsolete in the future

3
History of BSI

• June 2005 better sugar better business meeting
  agreed key impacts
• July 2005 to January 2006 aims and objectives
  agreed by e-mail
• January 2006 Interim Steering Group agreed
  structure and governance
• Jan 2006 to present - Steering Group develops the
  initiative
• Communication brief developed and circulated in
  English, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese

4
Other Commodity Round Tables

• Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
• Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)
• Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (www.rspo.org)
• Round Table on Responsible Soy
• Better Cotton Initiative
• Shrimp and Salmon aquaculture initiatives

5
What BSI will do

• Reduce, measurably, the most significant social
  and environment impacts
• Identify both on-farm and regional impacts
• Focus on 5-10 biggest impacts, not laundry lists

6
What BSI will do

• Identify a range of better management practices
  (BMPs) for different scale producers
• Analyze the economics of BMPs
• - most pay for themselves in 2-3 years
• Multi-stakeholder, transparent process to agree
• The most significant impacts
• Acceptable, measurable goals

7
Preparation and Planting Research

• Minimum Till
• Chemical weed control
• Direct drilled break crops
• Mounded rows
• Controlled traffic
• Wider multiple rows
• Direct drilled, mechanical cane planting

8
Growing the Plant Crop Research

• Zero Till
• Inter Row chemical weed control
• Split stool fertilizer application

9
Ratooning Research

• Inter row chemical weed control
• Split stool fertilizer application

10
BSI structure

• Multi-stakeholder forum
• Feedback, final sign-off on stds
• lt100 institutions experts
• Annual regional meetings

• Secretariat
• Day-to-day running
• Paid Co-ordinator
• 0.5 FTE Technical help

• Steering Committee
• Drives process
• 5 members (4 open)
• Chairman

• Technical working groups
• Propose draft standards
• Paid leader seconder
• Consult growing regions

Cane production
Cane processing co-products
Social / community
11
BSI Steering Committee

• Committee members on 24 Nov 2006
• Robert Quirk, canegrower (chairman)
• Jason Clay, environment NGO
• Olivier Geneviève, social NGO
• Hari Morar, miller/refiner
• Harry Ott, soft drinks company
• Seeking ACP, Brazilian, biofuel and banker
  representatives on Steering Committee and others

12
Voluntary standards

• BSI communication 17 February 2006
• Participants reconfirmed that
• the social and environmental standards that are
  eventually adopted
• will be voluntary

13
Developing and using standards

• The private sector needs to be transparently
  engaged in defining goals (eg. NSW Sugars Self
  Regulation)
• Adoption of goals by industry should preclude the
  necessity of Government intervention and
  regulation

14
Consultation

• BSI
• agrees that wide consultation and participatory
  approach are needed
• will work with all who share its aims and
  objectives

15
Social standards

• BSI
• Agrees that social goals will not be easy to set
• Will remain aware of ILO processes
• Will set up a Social and Community Technical
  Working Group (TWG)

16
Goals Implementation

• All BSI members will decide on achievable goals
• Goals achieved by BMPs can be used as screens for
  investors, buyers or insurers to make commodity
  production more sustainable
• The market will decide uptake, not BSI.

17
Next steps

• www.bettersugarcane.org
• BSI meeting in January 2007 in London
• 3-4 places available for potential Steering
  Committee members
• Recruit Steering and other members
• Raise funds and in-kind contributions
• Consult on Technical Working Groups
• Participate in ISSCT 2007

18
And over time

• Set up BSI as an independent organisation
• Consult iteratively on standards
• Propose draft standards in 2008
• Could be adopted by biofuels buyers