Meringa Sugar Experiment Station, Agricultural research station in Cairns Region, Australia

The Meringa Sugar Experiment Station is an agricultural research facility in the Cairns Region that occupies a large property with laboratories, offices, and specialized buildings for sugarcane research. The grounds hold experimental plots where scientists develop new varieties and test growing methods.

Queensland's first Sugar Experiment Station opened at Mackay in late 1900, not at Meringa. The Meringa station began in 1917 as an Entomological Station studying insect pests, and from the 1930s it worked on sugarcane breeding. In 1935 it bred the first cane toads released in Queensland, and from 1945 trials with benzene hexachloride there controlled the greyback grub. It is now run by Sugar Research Australia.

The facility stands on traditional Yidinjdji land, and visitors can see how scientific work shaped Queensland's sugar industry through its contributions and the structures that remain.

Access is usually limited to guided tours or special occasions since this is an active research facility. Check ahead and arrange a visit in advance to ensure you can see the site.

In 1935 the station bred the first cane toads released in Queensland, a fact tied to its entomological work rather than to sugarcane breeding. The cane toad later became one of Australia's best-known invasive species.