Sugar output falls 8% to 24.34 mn tonnes during Oct-Apr

Country's sugar output fell by 8% to 24.34 million tonnes till April 15 of the current marketing year ending September, while exports stood at 1.35 million tonnes, industry body ISMA said today.

Cane dues to be paid by mills to farmers remained lower at about Rs 13,300 crore so far this year as against Rs 21,800 crore in the year-ago, it said in a statement.

Mills had manufactured 26.46 million tonnes (MT) of sugar in the same period last year.

According to the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA), the sugar output fell mainly in Maharashtra and Karnataka. Only 117 mills were operating across the country till April 15 of this year, as against 245 mills in the year-ago period.

Production in Maharashtra, the country's leading sugar producing state, fell to 8.36 MT of sugar till April 15 of this marketing year from 9.96 MT in the year-ago period.

The sugar recovery rate was 11.29% in the state, which crushed less quantity of sugarcane at 7.4 MT this year.

Sugar output in Uttar Pradesh, the second biggest producing state, was at 6.77 MT till April 15 of this year, which is almost at last year's level. The sugar recovery rate was higher at 10.6% in the state.

In Karnataka, sugar output dropped to 4 MT from 4.58 MT, while the production in Andhra Pradesh also fell marginally to 8,10,000 tonnes in the said period.

In Tamil Nadu, the sugar output was higher at 9,25,000 tonnes and the state is expected to manufacture another 4,50,000 tonnes in the remained period of this year.

On exports, ISMA said exported were at 1.35 MT the first six months of 2015-16 marketing year, while mills dispatched higher quantity of sugar at 13.3 MT for sale in the domestic market in the same period.

On cane arrears, the industry body said it has come down to Rs 13,300 crore so far this year, as against Rs 21,800 crore in the year-ago period.

"With the improvement in domestic market, it is expected that cane price payments to the farmers will improve and arrears will come down substantially further in the next few months," ISMA added.

Sugar production of India, the worlds second-largest producer after Brazil, is estimated to decline to about 26 MT in 2015-16 marketing year (October-September) as against 28.3 MT in the previous year.