Mumbai, 1 Jun (Commoditiescontrol): India's highly industrial state - Maharashtra has regained its position as the country's top sugar producer status after a gap of five years. It has displaced the North India state - Uttar Pradesh (UP) from the top slot.
Experts attribute this achievement of Maharashtra to a couple of factors, including increased area under cultivation, better levels of water reservoirs, planting of high-yielding sugarcane, and, most importantly, sugar millers from UP preferring ethanol to sugar.
Maharashtra is set to witness a record sugar production in the current marketing year (October-September). According to Shekhar Gaikwad, sugar commissioner of Maharashtra, the state would witness record sugarcane crushing at 138 lakh tonnes (lt). That is an all-time high, beating the previous 107.21 lt of 2018-19.
The Western state is blessed with bountiful rainfall since the 2019 southwest monsoon season (June-September). The filling up of reservoirs and recharge of groundwater aquifers has induced farmers to plant more area under sugarcane, which is a 12-18 months duration crop. The benefits of abundant water and expanded acreage accrued fully in 2021-22.
Farmers too have cultivated high yielding variety of sugarcane. Encouraged by strong prospects, farmers brought more land under sugarcane cultivation. In 2020-21, the state reported a total area of 11.42 lakh hectares (lh) planted under cane. While the sugar commissioner’s office has estimated this year’s area at 12.4 lh.
The government claims Maharashtra’s average cane yield to have hit a historical high of 105 tonnes per hectare, from 85 tonnes in 2020-21. This rise in yields was not just because of high-yielding sugarcane, but because of an increase in area under cane cultivation as well.
It isn’t Maharashtra alone. Karnataka, too, is poised to produce a record 60 lt sugar this year, while Gujarat’s 12 lt would be its best since the 12.35 lt of 2010-11.
UP’s sugar production declined after 2019-20 due to sugarcane crushed by mills getting diverted for making ethanol, crop loss from excess rains, and water-logging in many low-lying cane-growing areas of eastern UP, and about 87 percent of UP’s cane area being planted under a single variety.
UP’s sugar output falling to a five-year-low in 2021-22 has, however, been more than offset by Maharashtra’s and Karnataka’s soaring to all-time-highs.
But interestingly, this hasn’t resulted in any price drop. “Ex-factory prices of S-30 (small crystal size) sugar in Maharashtra are now around Rs 32.5-33 per kg, while at Rs 34.5-35 for M-30 (medium size) grades in UP, more than the government-fixed minimum sale price of Rs 31.
Sugar prices continue to trend higher and are unlikely to fall soon due to increased exports. India's overseas sales have crossed 75 lt – surpassing the 71.9 lt record of 2020-21 – and are likely to reach 100 lt in the current sugar year. With opening stocks of 85 lt on October 1, 2021, production of 355.5 lt, domestic consumption of 275-280 lt, and exports of 100 lt, the year will close with 60.5-65.5 lt of sugar with mills. These stocks would suffice for over 2.5 months of domestic consumption.
Given the comfortable availability position, the Centre’s decision last week to restrict sugar exports and cap it at 100 lt for 2021-22 has taken many by surprise.
(By Commoditiescontrol Bureau: +91-22-40015505)
0 Comments 
Post Comment 
