An investigation into harvesting preferences in the central region

A survey investigated the attitudes of cane-harvesting contractors and growers in the Mackay and Proserpine districts towards large harvesting groups, and to obtain opinions about issues which may impact on the districts' future harvesting procedures. Although harvesting groups in Mackay are considerably smaller than those in Proserpine, harvest-group operators in both districts indicated that their goal was to achieve the lowest possible cane-harvesting costs. However, they were divided over whether large groups were the best way to achieve this goal. Most growers and harvester-operators surveyed from Proserpine thought that there were major advantages in operating large groups. Mackay respondents thought that large groups involved considerable risks associated with wet weather disruptions, and this appeared to be a major reason why they did not want to become involved with a large group. In Proserpine, there is a general acceptance that harvesting groups must continue to increase in size to remain viable in the future, whereas respondents in the Mackay district were not convinced that this was a necessary measure to ensure future viability.