READING PASSAGE 1
Sweet Trouble
Problems in the Australian sugar industry
The Australian town of Mossman in the state of Queensland
sits in a tropical landscape between the rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef.
Eco-tourism is important there; more than 80% of Douglas Shire, of which
Mossman is the administrative centre, is protected by World Heritage listing.
But for most of the town’s history, forest and reef have been largely
irrelevant: since the sugar mill was built in 1894, the town has relied on
sugarcane. Now Mossman is holding its breath. For two years the mill used by
all the farms has been close to bankruptcy. It is at the centre of the economic
shocks that have shaken Australia’s sugar industry, and for lifetime farmers
and a long list of cane industry workers a way of life will disappear if the
mill closes. Mossman has roughly 160 growers, who now produce less than one
million of the nation’s annual cane harvest of 30–40 million tonnes. But it is
a microcosm of the industry. All across Australia, the cane-growing business is
being squeezed between the pincers of economics and the environment.
The ten-year average return to sugar growers throughout the
1990s was about $350 a tonne. In early 2004, sugar prices plummeted, resulting
in a 25-year-low average of around $232 a tonne. Although figures vary widely
across farms and regions, that was about what it cost to grow a tonne of sugar
in Australia. To forestall social and economic disaster, the Government offered
more than $400 million to encourage growers to leave the industry. By the end
of the year, 274 farmers had taken up the offer to leave, but another 1,000 are
thought to be seriously considering it, allowing those remaining to buy the
vacated land and improve their economies of scale.
Fourth-generation Mossman grower Bill Phillips-Turner is one
who plans to fight on. ‘The consequences of losing the mill would be
catastrophic,’ Bill says. ‘Sugar has a big economic multiplier effect: for
every dollar generated from sugar, an additional $7 is generated in the wider
community. Because of limited options around here, most people now employed by
the industry would have to leave the area to find work.’ The
farmer-shareholders have so far saved the mill by accepting substantial cuts to
cane payments, but this has come at a big cost to everyone. As chairman of the
board of the mill, Bill has presided over tough and unpopular decisions: he has
had to sack staff, cut working hours and reduce the workforce. Assets were sold
and management was outsourced. They have also worked hard to find new ways of
doing business. Ethanol production, using sugar-based fuel, has potential, and
co-generation, using cane waste to produce fuel, power, or generate
electricity, is another possibility. However, the most preferred alternative is
to create a future for the mill as a food factory, turning out quality
sugar-based foods.
In addition to the economic struggle, there is the
environmental one. The sugar industry has the reputation of being
environmentally damaging, but it has some surprising supporters. Douglas Shire
mayor, Mike Berwick, is a well-known environmentalist, and might be expected to
be anti-cane. ‘There’s no question of the past damage it’s done to the reef
through chemical and nutrient run-off,’ he says. ‘But there’s a formula for
sustainable cane production and Mossman has nearly reached it.’ Another
surprise endorsement for cane comes from the Queensland Environmental
Protection Agency’s sugar liaison officer, Karen Benn. ‘I’m less worried about
the effect of cane on the environment than I am about other agriculture,’ she
says. ‘There are good growers everywhere, but at Mossman they seem to have
taken up the challenges faster.’ For example, sediment run-off, previously one
of the main environmental problems caused by cane growing, is now nothing like
it once was, according to Dr Brian Roberts, co-ordinator of the Douglas Shire
Water Quality Improvement Program. ‘North Queensland used to hold the record
for soil loss,’ he says. ‘Now ... cane country is accumulating soil.’
However, these improvements have been achieved at a great
cost to growers. Now in his 60s, Tom Watters has spent a lifetime on the same
farm. Fourteen years ago, he was alerted to the fact his cane could be having
an impact on the waterway on Mackay Creek, the narrow waterway that receives
all his run-off, and so Tom planted a 5,000-tree buffer along the edge of the
creek with rocks to prevent erosion, and began exploring methods that cause
minimal soil disturbance. However, none of these costly initiatives has helped
him get better cane prices. As his neighbour, Doug Cress, comments that
‘Economically, the [cane growing] doesn’t make much sense. But there’s more to
life than money. It’s this addiction to the way of life that keeps many cane
farmers growing an under-performing crop. “It’s a good lifestyle,” Doug says.
“I spend eight months working on the farm and four months working with our kids
while my wife works in town. I’ve been looking at alternative crops, like
forestry and cocoa, and it turns out that working away from the farm is the
best diversification we could do. However, I still don’t want to do that.”’
It is difficult to see how anyone can deal satisfactorily
with the passing of a way of life. Cane farmers have been part of eastern
Queensland for more than a century. But, despite the efforts they have put into
fighting the good environmental fight, there is no guarantee that the new way
of life evolving there will include cane.
Questions 1–4
Look at the following statements (Questions 1–4) and the
list of people below.
Match each statement with the correct person, A–F.
Write the correct letter, A–F, in boxes 1–4 on your answer
sheet.
List of people
A. Bill Phillips - Turner
B. Mike Berwick
C. Karen Bono
D. Brian Roberts
E. Tom Watters
F. Doug Crees
- Mossman
cane farming practices are close to an environmentally friendly model.
- Financial
return is not the only important factor for cane growers.
- Cane
sugar may not harm the environment as much as other crops do.
- The
local population would decline if the sugar-processing plant closed.
Questions 5–8
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 5–8 on your answer sheet.
5. In the first paragraph, the
writer says that the town is 'holding its breath' because
A. it has environmental problems.
B. its tourism business is
threatened.
C. most of its people have left the town.
D. a key processing plant may shut
down.
6. According to the writer, cane
growers who refuse the government offer are expected to
A. expand their farms.
B. sell their land at a low price.
C. find jobs in other industries.
D. seek financial help from banks.
7.Which of the following did Bill
Phillips-Turner find most difficult to do?
A. sell mill property
B. reduce spending on upkeep
C. lower mill workers’ wages
D. cut the number of mill staff
8.Cane grower Doug Cress says that
he
A. would prefer to grow cocoa.
B. wants to remain on his farm.
C. wants his family to live together.
D. will look for part-time work in town.
Questions 9–13
Do the following statements agree with the information given
in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 9–13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
9. In 2004, the cost of producing sugar in Australia was
similar to the selling price.
10. Farmers who accepted the Government offer have mostly
moved to the city.
11. Fuel production is regarded as the most desirable
alternative business for the sugar mill.
12. Tom Watters
reduced his use of pesticides.
13.Environmentally friendly farming practices have been
profitable for Tom Watters.
Questions 1–4
-
Mossman cane farming practices are close to an environmentally friendly model.
Answer: B (Mike Berwick) -
Financial return is not the only important factor for cane growers.
Answer: F (Doug Cress) -
Cane sugar may not harm the environment as much as other crops do.
Answer: C (Karen Benn) -
The local population would decline if the sugar-processing plant closed.
Answer: A (Bill Phillips-Turner)
Questions 5–8
-
In the first paragraph, the writer says that the town is 'holding its breath' because
Answer: D (a key processing plant may shut down) -
According to the writer, cane growers who refuse the government offer are expected to
Answer: A (expand their farms) -
Which of the following did Bill Phillips-Turner find most difficult to do?
Answer: D (cut the number of mill staff) -
Cane grower Doug Cress says that he
Answer: B (wants to remain on his farm)
Questions 9–13
-
In 2004, the cost of producing sugar in Australia was similar to the selling price.
Answer: TRUE -
Farmers who accepted the Government offer have mostly moved to the city.
Answer: NOT GIVEN -
Fuel production is regarded as the most desirable alternative business for the sugar mill.
Answer: FALSE (The most preferred alternative is to create a food factory.) -
Tom Watters reduced his use of pesticides.
Answer: NOT GIVEN (It only mentions planting trees and reducing soil disturbance.) -
Environmentally friendly farming practices have been profitable for Tom Watters.
Answer: FALSE (It says these costly initiatives did not help him get better prices.)
PASSWORD: GETPDFNOW
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