Sugar output up 14%; may touch record of 35.5 million tonnes in 2021-22: NFCSF

Sugar production in India has increased by 14 per cent to 34.2 million tonnes (MT) so far in the ongoing 2021-22 marketing year, and is expected to touch a record of 35.5 MT, cooperative body NFCSF said on Thursday. The country's sugar output stood at 31.1 MT in 2020-21, 25.9 MT in 2019-20, 32.2 MT in 2018-19 and 31.2 MT in 2017-18 marketing year, it said.

Sugar marketing year runs from October to September.

Releasing the data, National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) said, "India for the first time has witnessed record production of net sugar in excess of 34.2 million tonnes till April 2022."


The production so far is up by 14 per cent from 30 MT achieved in the year-ago period, it said.

Another remarkable feature is that out of the 520 sugar mills that are in operation, 219 mills are still in crushing as against 106 sugar mills in crushing in the year-ago period, it added.

"At this pace, all India net sugar production (after subsuming 3.5 MT of sugar for ethanol) is poised to be in excess of 35.5 million tonne," NFCSF said.

The crushing operation especially in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Gujarat may continue till end of May, which would be another new record in the history of Indian sugar sector, it added.

India is the second largest producer of sugar after Brazil.

Top three states (Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka) contributes 85 per cent to the total sugar production in India.

Put together, these three states have produced 29.1 MT of sugar as on April 30 this year, against 25.4 MT in the year-ago period, it said.

While all other states have produced 5.1 MT of sugar, against 4.6 MT during the comparable period.

Despite the highest-ever sugar production that India is poised to attain, the cooperative body said the ex-mill realisation of sugar in the domestic market has not crashed.

The average realisation as on date for S grade of sugar is Rs 3,300 per quintal, while for M grade it is Rs 3,550 per quintal.

"This is mainly due to record breaking sugar export contracts of 8.5 MT of which 6.5 MT has been physically dispatched from mill level to ports for exports," it said.

The major sugar export destinations are Indonesia (15 per cent), Bangladesh (10 per cent) and 3 per cent each to Afghanistan, Somalia, Djibouti and Malaysia, it said.

The final expected 9.5 MT of sugar exports would generate revenue of Rs 30,000 crore for Indian sugar mills which itself is an achievement in light of the fact that these exports have been accomplished without the government subsidy, it added.