Cyberattack cripples Mackay Sugar as crushing season begins in chaos

A cyberattack has struck Mackay Sugar, Australia’s second-largest raw sugar producer. The incident disrupted operations just days into the 2026 crushing season, affecting one of the country’s key cane-growing regions. The attack forced the shutdown of Farleigh and Racecourse mills in Queensland. Harvesting operations were halted as a result. Mackay Sugar has told growers to stop harvesting while systems are restored.

The company is investigating the breach with cybersecurity specialists and authorities. Its network supports around 1,300 mostly family-run farms supplying the mills. Direct updates are being shared with employees, growers, and partners as details emerge.

The threat involved 72 active adversaries from a pool of over 330 monitored groups. These included nation-state actors and financially driven cybercriminals. In March, the Food and Ag-ISAC had warned of rising, sophisticated cyber threats to the farm-to-table supply chain. The outage has raised concerns about the economic impact on growers and regional production if delays continue. Mackay Sugar aims to restore systems safely and resume operations as soon as possible.