ISMA seeks easing of stock limit as sugar output rises

PUNE: The country’s sugar output in the first 45 days of the current crushing season rose 79%, prompting the Indian Sugar Mills Association ( ISMA) to demand the easing of stock holding limits on traders to improve sales of the sweetener.

ISMA said 13.73 lakh tonnes of sugar has been produced in the first 45 days of the current season, compared with 7.67 lakh tonnes in year-ago period. An early start to the crushing season is the main reason for higher production, it said.

“With surplus sugar availability and lower sugar offtake than expected, continuance of stock holding limit at this stage is affecting their buying interests. This will affect cash flows, which may prove detrimental to the interests of sugar producers and very soon may impact their paying capacity to the sugarcane farmers,’ said ISMA.



Crushing for the sugar season 2017-18 has started earlier than in previous seasons. As on November 15 this year, 313 sugar mills were already crushing sugarcane, compared with 222 mills on November 15, 2016. Mills in UP and Maharashtra are the primary contributors to higher output.

Uttar Pradesh sugar mills have produced 5.67 lakh tonnes of sugar up to November 15, 2017, against 1.93 lakh tonnes produced last year, with 78 mills were crushing sugarcane against 55 sugar mills in 2016.

“Similarly, in Maharashtra as against 95 sugar mills which were crushing sugarcane last year as on November 15, 2016, when 1.92 lakh tonnes of sugar was produced, 137 sugar mills were crushing sugarcane this year on the same day, and 3.26 lakh tonnes have already been produced,” ISMA said.

The country’s third-largest sugar producer, Karnataka, has produced almost the same quantity as it did last year.