Costa Maya, Q.R. — Southern sugarcane farmers in Costa Maya continue their protest of unfair prices and export opportunities. For three consecutive days, sugarcane farmers have blocked the San Rafael de Pucte sugar mill as a pressure tactic.
The state’s farmers began their protest Monday after a group entered the mill Saturday evening stopping a shipment from leaving.
According to the protesters, on Saturday evening, dozens of producers took over the mill’s facilities to stop the sugar from leaving the warehouse. The farmers say they are demanding that the company export the surplus to the international market.
The blockade of the San Rafael de Pucte sugar mill warehouse in south Quintana Roo is part of a national protest by sugarcane farmers across the country.
Farmers say the Mexican market is saturated with overproduction, which has caused a considerable drop in price. One Quintana Roo sugarcane farmer said the value is usually around 14,000 pesos per ton.
According to Agustín Galaviz, leader of the CNC Sugarcane Producers in Tepic, Nayarit, the most farmers would get right now is 10,000 pesos per ton.
For the 2025/2026 harvest cycle in Mexico, the reference price for standard base sugar was set at 16,100 pesos per ton, which serves as the basis for calculating the sugarcane price for mills that export.
The final price received by the sugarcane grower depends on the Karbe (Kilogramos de Azúcar Recuperable Base Estándar) obtained at each specific mill. Karbe is the standard amount of sugar that can technically be obtained from sugarcane during processing. The higher the quality of the sugarcane (more sucrose, less fiber), the higher the Karbe.
