According to the cooperative body National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF), sugar output in India has climbed by 14% to 34.2 million tonnes (MT) so far in the current marketing year 2021-22, and is forecast to reach a new high of 35.5 MT.  Sugar output in the country was 31.1 MT in 2020-21, 25.9 MT in 2019-20, 32.2 MT in 2018-19, and 31.2 MT in the 2017-18 marketing year, the report said.

"India for the first time has experienced record production of net sugar in excess of 34.2 million tonnes to April 2022," the NFCSF stated in a statement. According to the company, current output is up 14% over the previous year's 30 MT.

Another noteworthy aspect is that 219 of the 520 sugar mills in operation are still crushing, compared to 106 mills crushing a year ago, the report add. "At this rate, total India net sugar production (after subsuming 3.5 MT of sugar for ethanol) will exceed 35.5 million tonne," the NFCSF said. The crushing operation, which is concentrated in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Gujarat, could last till the end of May, setting yet another new record in the Indian sugar industry, the report adds.

After Brazil, India is the world's second-largest sugar producer. The top three states (Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Karnataka) account for 85% of India's total sugar production. According to the report, these three states produced 29.1 MT of sugar as of April 30 this year, compared to 25.4 MT the previous year. During the same period, all other states produced 5.1 MT of sugar, compared to 4.6 MT in the previous year.

Despite India's impending highest-ever sugar production, the cooperative body claims that sugar ex-mill realisation in the domestic market has not fallen. As of today, the average price for S grade sugar is Rs 3,300 per quintal, while the average realisation for M grade sugar is Rs 3,550 per quintal. "This is primarily due to record-breaking sugar export contracts of 8.5 MT, of which 6.5 MT has been physically sent from mill level to ports for exports," it said.

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