The National Farmers Union (NFU) has strongly criticised a Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) proposal to discontinue rail services between Tavua and Ba, calling the move “absurd” and urging the government to intervene as the matter goes before the Sugar Industry Tribunal. NFU general secretary Mahendra Chaudhry said growers already facing rising production and transport costs would be hardest hit if the rail link is shut.
Chaudhry challenged the timing and rationale of FSC’s application, pointing to a government directive issued in July 2025 that instructed FSC to immediately reactivate the rail line from Lausa Loop to Tawatawa Point in Tavua to help reduce farmers’ transport bills. He noted that the government also provided a $1.7 million grant to FSC for urgent maintenance works on the line, work that he says was completed around September 2025. “Why then is FSC proposing to discontinue the rail service now?” Chaudhry asked.
The NFU argues that closing the rail line would be especially illogical given the current rise in fuel prices. Chaudhry warned that increased diesel costs are already squeezing cane farmers’ margins and said reactivating rail infrastructure — not shutting it down — would be the sensible response to escalating transport costs. “Considering the soaring cost of fuel, it would make perfect sense to reactivate all rail lines, not shut them down and pass additional transport costs onto farmers,” he said.
The Sugar Cane Growers Council has also opposed the FSC proposal, the NFU said, adding to a united front of growers calling for the application to be withdrawn. Chaudhry described the situation as evidence of poor coordination between government agencies and state-owned enterprises: “This is another case of the government’s right hand not knowing what its left hand is doing,” he told reporters.
FSC’s application is now before the Sugar Industry Tribunal, which will determine whether the rail services can be discontinued. The tribunal’s decision could have immediate implications for growers in the Ba and Tavua cane belt ahead of upcoming crushing seasons, with transport arrangements and costs a central concern for many small- and medium-scale farmers.
Chaudhry has called on the government to step in and direct FSC to withdraw its application and comply with the earlier ministerial directive to keep the line operative. How the government responds — whether it will instruct FSC to reverse course or leave the dispute to the tribunal — remains the key development to watch as the case proceeds.