Cuba says sugar cane rust and smut under control

HAVANA, July 15 (Reuters) - Plague-resistant sugar cane varieties and improved cultivation have dramatically reduced the presence of cane rust and smut in Cuban sugar plantations, boosting output, the country's top expert said on Tuesday.

"Today we are at one of our best moments in terms of cane varieties," Ignacio Santana Aguiar, the director of the National Sugar Cane Research Center, said.

Santana, interviewed by a local radio station, said 87 percent of the country's sugar cane comes from Cuban-developed varieties to meet the country's specific conditions, compared with 47 percent in 2001.

"These varieties are more resistant to plagues and disease and mature more quickly," he said.

"We are at 4 percent of total acreage with must (carbon de cana), compared with 54 percent in 2001. In terms of rust, we are at 15 percent, compared with 60 percent in 2001," he said.

Cuban raw sugar output increased 24 percent this year to 1.5 million tonnes, the first increase since the industry was downsized by more than 50 percent in 2003.

The sugar ministry said a similar increase was expected next year.

When Cuba reorganized the industry it set the goal of raising average yield from 21 tonnes of cane per hectare to a minimum 54 tonnes.

The average yield was 28 tonnes in 2006 and 36 tonnes in 2007, with Reuters estimating this year's at just over 40 tonnes per hectare. (Reporting by Marc Frank, editing by Matthew Lewis)