Maharashtra: Section of sugar industry hints at higher production levels than expected

Mills in Sangli and Kolhapur have complained of a 1.25 per cent dip in sugar recovery (ratio between sugar produced versus cane crushed, expressed as a percentage). Millers say this is mainly because of the floods in August, which had destroyed standing crops in around 2 lakh hectares of area in these two districts. The district collector has instructed mills to harvest cane from such fields, but millers have talked about a loss of recovery if such cane is crushed.

The average recovery of these two districts, which is normally 12.50 per cent, at present is around 11.25 per cent. Vijay Autade, senior industry analyst, however, pointed out that the cane from the flood-affected fields is almost over, and henceforth, cane with better sucrose content will come to the mills. “The long sunny days has ensured good growth to cane in other parts of the districts. There are chances of the recovery rate increasing January onwards,” he said.

However, Rohit Pawar, CEO of Baramati Agro Limited, which operates private sugar mills in Pune and Aurangabad, said the final sugar production figure would be around 60 lt. Another miller said the situation of the crop in Satara and Pune is good, with Satara reporting better per acre yields.

“Pune and Satara might provide traction to the season, and the final production figure can be above 60 lt,” Autade said. Maharashtra’s estimates have slipped in the past, especially last year, when the state ended up producing an all time high of 107.2 lt of the sweetener. Previously, the estimates and final production figures had failed to match with each other, which had caused problems of either plenty or too little in the country.