● <B>To whom is the regrouping project addressed? The Farmers Services Corporation (FSC) wants to target all planters who have plots of land of less than 25 hectares. The regrouping will concern an overall number of 28,000 planters and will extend over10 years. This concept is part of the sugar reform to try and face the 36% drop by 2009. The aim is to allow all planters to survive after the reform by giving them access to mechanised methods and adapted management techniques.

● <B>Where is the FSC with the regrouping? It has actually started its second phase, which will extend until June 2008 for areas such as New-Grove, Providence, Trianon, l?Etoile, Fond-du-Sac not to mention all of them. The first phase of regrouping that has been completed in l?Esperance has allowed regrouping 16 planters who are now fully satisfied with the results obtained. They realise that they would not have been able to modernise their techniques on their own.

● <B>Planters were quite sceptical about the concept of regrouping at the beginning. What has changed since then? There may still be some planters who are not in favour of the regrouping system. However, the FSC is making awareness campaigns throughout the island and the minister of Agro-Industry, Arvin Boolell, is also present in the field to try and convince planters that it is in their interest to accept regrouping.