The region was found to be ideal for the cultivation of sugarcane and Maurice Geoffrey O'Connell is regarded as the first to plant the crop in the Herbert River area. He, however, soon committed suicide and other entrepreneurs expanded the industry. In 1870, James MacKenzie established the Gairloch plantation, Farrand Haig and Henry Miles founded the Bemerside plantation, while Arthur Neame and Edwin Waller established the Macknade plantation. The first local sugar mill was constructed in 1872 at the Gairloch property, with the Bemerside and Macknade mills opening the following year. These operations came into financial difficulty and the Hamleigh Sugar Company with Alfred Cowley as manager became the dominant sugar enterprise in the region by 1883. However, with significant government assistance, the Colonial Sugar Refining Company (CSR) monopolised the Hebert valley sugar production by 1886, purchasing most of the plantations, buying the Macknade mill and establishing its own mill in 1883 at the Victoria Plantation. The Macknade and Victoria mills are still in operation and are owned by Wilmar Sugar Australia.