Biocommodities, a ticket to sweet success for Mackay sugar cane

The Mackay sugar cane industry has been given extra support from the Queensland Government to become a biocommodity powerhouse.

Two sites in Mackay have been designated a State Development Area (SDA), rezoning 907 hectares of land adjacent to the Racecourse Mill and at Rosella, with work to begin on a draft development scheme.

This dedicated space positions Mackay as a potential world leader in bio-industries, which are finding new ways to make food, fibre and feed from sugar cane biomass.

Mackay’s sugar industry can also benefit from the Queensland Government’s $4 million Bioenergy Fund.

The Fund will provide matched financial assistance of between $250,000 and $2 million for industry to investigate expanding bioenergy generation from biomass waste streams and support technology innovation.