Texas is set to surpass Hawai'i this year as the nation's third largest sugarcane producer, according to a recent forecast by the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Hawai'i sugarcane production is projected to dip nearly 3 percent this year to 1.76 million tons. That would place the state just below Texas, where sugarcane production is forecast to climb 11 percent to 1.81 million tons. Florida is expected to lead the nation with 13.95 million tons of sugarcane produced this year, followed by Louisiana with 10.68 million tons of sugarcane production.

Sugar remains Hawai'i's second largest commodity behind pineapple, but the industry has been declining for decades. The industry now consists mainly of the Gay & Robinson operation in southwest Kauai, and Alexander & Baldwin's operation on Maui. The amount land under cultivation for sugarcane production has dwindled to about 22,000 acres today from about 242,000 acres in the late 1960s, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Still, Hawai'i growers continue to produce significantly more sugarcane per acre than their Mainland competitors thanks to favorable weather conditions. The average yield this year is expected to reach 79 tons per acre, more than double that of Texas and Florida, and more than triple that of Louisiana.

Growers of sugar, pineapple and other Hawai'i crops continue to grapple with high land and labor costs along with increasing competition from low-cost foreign countries.

The sugar industry eventually could benefit from a state-mandated switch to ethanol-blended gasoline that took effect in April. However, local production of the alcohol-based fuel isn't expected to occur until late next year.

Statewide, the sugar industry employs about 800 people.