The government may consider allowing one million tonne (MT) of sugar exports in addition to the 6 MT of shipment already approved for the 2022-23 season (October-September), a senior food ministry official has said.
“More exports are possible and we have a cushion for exports of additional one million tonne if the overall production reaches the estimated 33.6 MT this year,” the official said.
The official said that the government will take a call next month on additional export after assessing domestic production.
“Sugar availability is comfortable in the country and, as a result, wholesale and retail prices of the sweetener are on a decline in the last one month,” the official said.
India exported a record 11 MT of sugar in 2021-22.
According to the food ministry, the country’s sugar production has been estimated lower at 33.6 MT for the 2022-23 season, due to a fall in production in the top three producing states – Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.
About 5 MT of sugar will be diverted for ethanol production this year, much higher than 3.6 MT in the previous year, according to the food ministry.
Despite an estimate of lower sugar production, the official said the country’s total availability of sugar would be 40.1 MT in 2022-23, which includes a carry-over stock of 7 MT from the previous year.
Wholesale price of sugar was ruling at Rs 3,841 per quintal on March 3 against Rs 3,860 per quintal a month ago. Retail price of sugar, too, was down marginally at Rs 41.61 per kg against Rs 41.8 per kg during the comparable period, the official added.
Meanwhile, the National Sugar Federation (NSF) has estimated the country’s sugar production in the 2022-23 season to decline 7% to 33.5 MT from the previous year’s output of 35.9 MT due to lower yield in Maharashtra and Karnataka attributed to adverse weather conditions last year.
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Maharashtra, the biggest sugar producing state, has cut down the estimated sweetener production in the current season by 9% to 12.5 MT from 13.8 MT in the 2021-22 season because of the reduction in sugarcane yield due to unseasonal rains in October last year.
Similarly, sugar production in Karnataka this year is estimated at 5.5 MT, which is 14% less than the previous year’s output of 6.4 MT