Sugar was new to Europe in the 1500s. It became hugely popular and profitable quickly, and Puerto Rico was in the center of the action. Spain brought sugarcane from what is now the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico and established sugar cane plantations. The first sugar mill was built around 1523, and sugar was more important to Puerto Rico’s economy than gold by the 1600s.
Slavery, which had been a key factor in making sugar production profitable, ended in Puerto Rico in 1873. Tariff wars between the United States and Spain affected prices. Plagues and hurricanes took their toll as well. However, automation arrived in the late 19th century, bringing machinery and electricity to improve production. Meanwhile, the U.S. appetite for sugar was growing, and New World demand replaced European markets. When Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the United States in 1898, Spanish restrictions were replaced by U.S. trade benefits and Puerto Rico’s sugar industry blossomed again.
The 20th century
Throughout the 20th century, sugar was the most important cash crop in Puerto Rico. However, companies from the U.S. mainland benefited more than local farmers from the boom in sugar production. While there is controversy over the claim that companies from the mainland took over the land used to grow sugar and displaced small farmers, just three large corporations controlled 40% of the supply according to research conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service.
This changed in the 1940s, when the territorial government ruled against land holdings of more than 500 acres. Most sugar plantations were larger than this, and the government of Puerto Rico had the power to buy land holdings over 500 acres, with the goal of redistributing the land to small farmers. However, by the 1950s, the government of the territory was the single largest landowner of sugar-growing properties. They had bought up 36% of the corporate land, but had not been successful in their plans for redistribution.
In 1948, Operation Bootstrap, a joint plan of the federal and territorial governments, was introduced. The intention was to switch from an agricultural economy to an industrial one. 1952 was the peak year for sugar production in Puerto Rico, and by the 1960s the industry was in decline.
As in the states, people in Puerto Rico gradually chose to leave agricultural work for factory and office jobs. Lower supply in the labor force led to higher wages and thus higher costs of production for sugar. Sugar mills began to fail, and the territorial government stepped in, buying failing sugar mills as they had bought sugar producing land. Sugar production was nationalized in 1973. The government sugar operation, called The Sugar Corporation, has had losses since 1974, with the total loss in excess of one billion dollars.
Current position
Now, Puerto Rico, which used to be the primary source of raw sugar for the United States, imports sugar from the Dominican Republic, Brazil, the Philippines, Laos, and Mexico.
The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) reported in 2024 that Puerto Rico had “permanently exited sugarcane production,” perhaps marking the official end of the sugar industry in Puerto Rico. The Coloso Sugar Refinery was decommissioned in 2003, and was the last commercial refinery on the Island. However, some sugar cane is still grown in Puerto Rico, and the climate is still ideal for this crop. There is a rum distillery on the Island that uses local sugarcane in its production.
Much of the land that used to grow sugar cane now is idle, owned by the government and not in use for any purpose.
The post A Page from History: The Sugar Industry in Puerto Rico appeared first on PUERTO RICO REPORT.
