Apr 27, 2025
Lucknow: Sugar exports from UP are likely to decrease by around 40% after ongoing 2024-25 crushing season, according to an internal assessment of the sugar industry in the state. UP is the biggest producer of sugar in the country. The state is expected to contribute 3 lakh MT of sugar to the total 6-7 lakh MT of the export pool from India. This will be substantially less compared to 2022-23 when the state shipped out 5 lakh MT of sugar.
In 2023-24, the govt did not allow the export of sugar due to concerns about domestic sugar availability and rising food inflation. Despite the sugar mills’ requests, the govt ruled out allowing any sugar exports during this period. In the 2021-22 season, India exported approximately 11 million tonnes of sugar.
The state, nevertheless, would maintain its premier position of contributing to almost 50% of the total sugar exports from India to some of the South-East Asian and African countries. This year, the sugar industry demanded the export of 1 million MT of sugar, which was subsequently restricted to just 6-7 lakh MT. Since then, industry groups lowered their output forecasts for the current year, raising concerns over potential supply shortages.
UP, too, adjusted to the situation while catering to domestic demands, a senior official in the cane development department said.
The total sugar production from UP is expected to be pegged at around 92 lakh MT in the 2024-25 season. Experts said that some of the recent challenges, including cane productivity, affected sugar production in UP.
The 2024-25 season saw a significant decline in sugar output due to adverse weather conditions, including drought and excessive rainfall, which impacted cane yields. This led to a reduction in India’s total sugar production to around 27 million tonnes, below the annual consumption of over 29 million tonnes, affecting the country’s ability to export sugar, some reports say.
As a matter of fact, sugar is heavily regulated by the govt.