List of sugar mills in Queensland

Australian sugar industry

Industry	Agriculture, Food processing
Founded	1864
Headquarters	Australia
Area served	Queensland, New South Wales
Products	Raw sugar, sugarcane

The sugar sector represents a crucial industry in Australia, with an estimated worth of $2.5 billion in 2024. Sugarcane farming, which thrives in warm climates with sufficient water supply, is predominantly found in Queensland, alongside some cultivation in northern New South Wales. Queensland ranks this industry as its second largest agricultural export. Annually, over 4,000 sugarcane farms harvest between 32 and 35 million tonnes of cane, which is processed into approximately 4 to 4.5 million tonnes of raw sugar at various mills. By 2011, Australia operated 24 sugar mills stretching from Mossman in Queensland down to Grafton in New South Wales. The Mackay Region is home to five mills—Racecourse, Farleigh, Marian, Proserpine, and Sarina—that are locally owned and support production across Central and Northern Queensland. The region’s industrial-scale sugar production began with the establishment of the first plantation in Moreton Bay in 1864.

List of operating sugar mills in Queensland

Outlined below is a north-to-south overview of Queensland’s sugar mills.

Sugar mills in Queensland

Photo	Name	Location	Local government area	Crush capacity [million tonnes cane per year]	Notes	Coordinates
	Mulgrave Sugar Mill	Gordonvale	Cairns Region	1.2	In operation since 1896; owned by MSF Sugar, a subsidiary under the Mitr Phol Group.	17.0929°S 145.7889°E / -17.0929; 145.7889
	Tableland Sugar Mill	Arriga	Shire of Mareeba	0.6	Queensland’s newest mill (established 1998), managed by MSF Sugar within the Mitr Phol Group umbrella.	17.1197°S 145.3453°E / -17.1197; 145.3453
	South Johnstone Sugar Mill	South Johnstone	Cassowary Coast Region	1.8	Operated by MSF Sugar, part of the Mitr Phol Group.	17.6057°S 145.9909°E / -17.6057; 145.9909
	Tully Sugar Mill	Tully	Cassowary Coast Region	2.5	Owned by Tully Sugar, a subsidiary of China Foods Limited.	17.9370°S 145.9267°E / -17.9370; 145.9267
	Macknade Sugar Mill	Macknade	Shire of Hinchinbrook	1.82	Managed by Wilmar Sugar Australia, crushing around 1.5 million tonnes of cane annually to yield roughly 191,000 tonnes of raw sugar.	18.5883°S 146.2589°E / -18.5883; 146.2589
	Victoria Sugar Mill	Victoria Plantation	Shire of Hinchinbrook	3.74	Queensland’s largest mill under Wilmar Sugar Australia, producing about 400,000 tonnes of raw sugar yearly from nearly 3 million tonnes of cane.	18.6504°S 146.2023°E / -18.6504; 146.2023
	Invicta Sugar Mill	Giru	Shire of Burdekin	3.67	Operated by Wilmar; processed approximately 440,000 tonnes of raw sugar from around 3 million tonnes of cane in 2022; relocated to Giru in 1919.	-19.5169|147.1058|} }

In northern New South Wales, sugar mills are situated at Broadwater, Condong, and Harwood Island locations.

Former sugar mills in Queensland

Queensland's history includes numerous local sugar mills, initially established due to limited transportation options. As transport networks improved, many smaller facilities ceased operations, leaving only the larger, more financially sustainable mills active. Below is a north-to-south compilation of notable former sugar mills, emphasizing their operational timelines and business backgrounds.

Former sugar mills in Queensland

	Name	Location	Local government area	Crush capacity [million tonnes cane per year]	Notes	Coordinates (may be approximate)
	Mossman Central Mill	Mossman	Shire of Douglas	0.85	Managed by Far Northern Milling; processed approximately 640,000 tonnes of cane in 2022.	16.4586°S 145.3782°E / -16.4586; 145.3782 (Mossman Central Mill)
	Maryborough Sugar Mill	Maryborough	Fraser Coast Region	0.8	Operated under MSF Sugar, a Mitr Phol Group subsidiary; annual crushing ranges between 0.7 and 0.8 million tonnes.	25.5479°S 152.7172°E / -25.5479; 152.7172 (Maryborough Sugar Mill)
	Pleystowe Sugar Mill	Pleystowe	Mackay Region		No longer active; currently utilized by Mackay Sugar for shared support services aiding other mills.	21.1430°S 149.0392°E / -21.1430; 149.0392 (Pleystowe Sugar Mill)
	Bingera Sugar Mill	South Kolan	Bundaberg Region		Facility operated by Bundaberg Sugar.	24.9290°S 152.1998°E / -24.9290; 152.1998 (Bingera Sugar Mill)
	Hop Wah Pioneer Sugar Mill	Mulgrave Road, Woree	Cairns Region		Established in 1881 as North Queensland’s first sugar mill; initially owned by the Hop Wah Company comprising Chinese investors and overseen by Andrew Leon.		-	Hambledon Sugar Mill Mill Road, Edmonton Cairns Region Operational from 1883 until closure in 1991. Template:Coords (approximate)	-	Babinda Central Sugar Mill Babinda Cairns Region Functioned between 1915 and 2011. 17.340°S 145.925°E / -17.340; 145.925	-	Goondi Sugar Mill Goondi, Queensland Cassowary Coast Region Started operations in 1883; ceased in 1987 following acquisition by Bundaberg Sugar. 17.5089°S 146.0020°E / -17.5089; 146.0020 (Goondi Sugar Mill) (approximate)	-	Mourilyan Sugar Mill Mill Street, Mourilyan, Queensland Cassowary Coast Region Opened in 1883; permanently closed later in 2006 after sustaining damage from Cyclone Larry. 17.5799°S 146.0336°E / -17.5799; 146.0336 (Mourilyan Sugar Mill)	- ... (The list continues with similar entries detailing former mills’ operational periods and business remarks.)