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"It's right in your face all the time. It's kind of hypnotizing," said Robin Myers, as he steered the droning, 65-ton harvester through a churning sea of sugar cane.

In the sugar country rimming the southern half of Lake Okeechobee, all's not quiet on any front since October, when U.S. Sugar Corp. debuted 'round-the-clock harvesting.

The new night work is part of the Clewiston-based company's campaign to squeeze a little bit more sugar and profit from the 2000-2001 crop.

That's crucial, company executives have said, because sugar commodity prices have recovered only slightly from the 15- to 20-year lows in recent months. In September, poor prices prompted Florida growers, for the first time in 14 years, to surrender some of last year's raw sugar in lieu of repaying $141 million in federal loans.

U.S. Sugar also announced in September it was restructuring and eliminating more than 300 jobs - approximately 10 percent of its work force. The goal is to save $30 million through reduced labor and more efficient production methods.

Sugar keeps economy sweet

Sugar cane is Florida's second-largest crop, surpassed only by citrus. Although it's not grown commercially in Lee County, sugar dollars from Clewiston - 60 miles east of Fort Myers - sweeten the region's economy. U.S. Sugar, the nation's biggest producer of sugar cane and sugar from cane, does business with more than 100 Lee County-based vendors, said Judy Sanchez, company spokeswoman.

Sucrose in sugar cane starts to degrade as soon as it's cut. The best sugar cane is the freshest because it yields more sugar. It also is less likely to experience a bacterial condition that tends to gum up mill equipment, Sanchez said.

The main principle behind 24/7 harvesting is "just-in-time delivery. Get the cane to the mill exactly when it's needed," said Robert Dolson, company president & CEO.

Day- and night-harvesting also is expected to shorten the harvesting and processing season by a few weeks, and make better use of the mechanical harvesters, which cost $350,000 apiece.

It's requiring some adjustments, though, from the humans who run the equipment. Although harvesting gear is lighted as brightly as an auto lot, it's pitch black just steps away from the cane being cut.

"You can't see too much. You've got to use your best judgment," said Myers, who's been harvesting cane for five years.

In mechanical harvesting, a tractor pulling carts rides parallel to the harvester, collecting cut cane as it spews out.

"You've got to watch out for the (tractor) guy so he doesn't run into you or you run into him," Myers said.

Myers starts work at 2 p.m., and clocks out 12 to 13 hours later.

"How do I stay awake? God. He keeps me awake," said Myers. In the harvester cab, he listens to Gospel music from Sugar 900-AM, out of Belle Glade. Myers, 34, also thinks about his infant son, who's in the hospital with lung problems.

When Myers moved to Florida from Jamaica five years ago, Florida's sugar industry was in the midst of converting from harvesting manually to the mechanical harvesters with air-conditioned cabs that are used today.

"Whoa, that's some hard work," Myers said of the brief time he wielded a machete in the cane fields. As challenging as it is to drive a mechanical harvester, Myers said he can't imagine going back to cutting by hand.

24-hour work 'groundbreaking'

Overnight harvesting is done in other countries, "but in the U.S. industry, it's groundbreaking," said Woody Story, harvesting supervisor for U.S. Sugar's western operations.
Those who work the night shift are paid 25 cents an hour more, "not a lot, but it helps," Story said.

Workers are adjusting OK to new bedtimes, although it's still a challenge for those who must retire to bed while the sun is still up, Story said He starts checking on the previous day's harvest at 4 a.m. from his home, arrives at the office by 5:30 a.m, and won't return home until after 9 p.m.

Currently, the Clewiston Mill is grinding 25,000 to 26,000 tons of sugar cane daily. "We hope to get that up to 26,500 or 27,000 before the season's over," Story said.
U.S. Sugar expects to harvest 800,000 tons this season, down from last year's record 850,000 tons.

It's unclear whether others in Florida's sugar industry will pick up the practice of night harvesting.

"Some of our people were concerned about the safety issues, and the potential impact on a grower's field," said Barbara Miedema, spokeswoman for the 54-member Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative based in Belle Glade. "It's something we'll be watching very closely, to see how successful they are with it," Miedema said.

- Contact Laura Ruane at lruane@news-press.com or 335-0392.