On The Land
6 June, 2026
Growers urged to give input into code
CANEGROWERS says Queensland’s sugar industry should be focused on future opportunities – not reopening old grower-miller disputes the Sugar Code of Conduct was introduced to help resolve.
The peak grower body will call on the Federal Government to remake the decade-old Code with practical improvements, saying it remained an important safeguard for fair, orderly negotiations across the industry.
Canegrowers chief executive officer Dan Galligan said the industry already had enough pressure points without removing a framework that had helped reduce the risk of prolonged supply disputes.
“The sugar industry is dealing with low sugar prices, fuel and fertiliser supply pressures, recent milling and season-length challenges, pressure on harvesting groups, and the constant risk of weather and natural disasters,” he said.
“At the same time, there are real opportunities ahead, including growing interest in biofuels and renewable energy products where sugarcane has a real opportunity to play a central role.
“To deal with those challenges and make the most of those opportunities, the industry needs growers, millers and marketers pulling in the same direction. The Code helps by taking one major pressure point off the table.”
The Sugar Code is currently subject to a statutory review ahead of its scheduled sunset date of 1 October 2027.
Mr Galligan said the review was an important process, but not a crisis.
“Our position is clear. The Code should be remade, with sensible amendments where they improve how it works in practice,” he said.
Introduced in 2017 following major industry disputes over grower marketing rights, the Sugar Code sets ground rules for negotiations between growers and millers.
It requires parties to negotiate in good faith, protects growers’ ability to choose who markets their Grower Economic Interest sugar, and provides access to pre-contract arbitration if negotiations break down.
Mr Galligan said the Code did not remove commercial risk or guarantee outcomes, but it gave growers and millers a clear framework for resolving difficult issues.
“Arbitration is not something anyone enters into lightly. It can be costly and time-consuming, so it is in everyone’s interest to reach commercial agreement wherever possible,” he said.
“But the existence of that circuit breaker matters. It gives confidence to growers who only have one practical milling option, and it supports fair commercial negotiations across the supply chain.”
Canegrowers is encouraging growers to make their own submissions before the public consultation period closes on 16 June.
For more information on the review, and to have a say on the discussion paper, visit https://haveyoursay.agriculture.gov.au/sugar-code-review
