India produced 238 lakh tonnes sugar so far this season: ISMA

NEW DELHI: India has produced approximately 238 lakh tonnes of sugar, with around 200 sugar mills (38 per cent of the total mills) still operational as of April 15, Indian Sugar and Bio-energy Manufacturers Association said in a statement Thursday.

Sugar marketing season in India runs from October to September.

Around 35 lakh tons of sugar is expected to be diverted towards ethanol production this year, against last year’s estimated diversion of 21.5 lakh tonnes.

Around 22 factories are still operational in Uttar Pradesh. Out of which around 16 factories are operating in West UP.

“Owing to the improved yield of plant cane, cane availability has improved in the state of UP and these factories are expected to remain in operation upto late April 2025 / May 1st week,” said the industry body in its statement.

Moreover, ISMA asserted that sugar recovery from sugarcane has also shown improvement in the second half of the season resulting in better output of sugar.

In Maharashtra, a key sugar grower of sugarcane, one sugar mill in Pune district is expected to remain in operation upto second week of May 2025.
“…some factories in South Karnataka are expected to restart operations during the special season from June / July to September 2025,” ISMA noted.

Benefiting from a favorable southwest monsoon in 2024, sugarcane planting for the 2025-26 season has reportedly shown notable improvement in key producing states like Maharashtra and Karnataka.

Consequently, the crushing season is anticipated to begin as per schedule in October 2025, ensuring adequate supply position.

Seasonal outlooks from both the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and Skymet project a normal southwest monsoon for 2025.

“This reinforces confidence in a favorable agro-climatic environment, supporting a healthy sugarcane crop and robust production potential for the 2025-26 season,” ISMA said. (ANI)