New Delhi: Asserting that the Centre’s priority is to ensure sufficient availability of sugar for consumption at reasonable rate, Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey on Wednesday justified the decision to cap sugar exports at 10 million tonnes this year, calling it a “timely and precautionary” measure to ensure adequate availability during the festival season in October-November.
“The government is committed to stablise prices of sugar in the domestic market and in the past 12 months, prices of sugar are under control,” Pandey said.
Though the prices of sugar are “more stable” when compared to other commodities, the decision to curb sugar exports was taken to prevent any undue spike in retail prices amid global shortage of the commodity, he told media persons.
India emerged the world’s largest sugar producer, toppling Brazil which faced shortage of output this year.
India is also the second largest sugar exporter in the world.
The Food Secretary said sugar exports had risen sharply from about 50,000 tonnes in 2016-17 to 10 million tonnes this year.
“It is not a curb. The country’s sugar exports this year are the highest ever. Already 9 MT have been contracted of which 7.5 MT have been exported,” he said.
From June 1, all mills will apply to DFPD for exports.
Pandey said curbs had to be imposed to ensure enough availability of sugar during the festival season in October-November, which is also the beginning of the new sugar marketing year and when domestic demand of sugar is met from old stocks.
About 6-6.2 MT will be the closing stock at the end of the current marketing year, just the optimum level to meet the domestic requirement in October-November, he said.
India’s domestic requirement is around 27.8 MT.
Currently, global availability of sugar is also less due to shortage in Brazil, which is another reason for restrictions.
It was a “timely and a precautionary step”, he said, adding that industry body ISMA also believes that not more than 10 MT can be exported this year.
Currently, sugar prices both in wholesale and retail markets are more stable when compared to other commodities. While ex-mill prices of sugar are ruling at Rs 32-33 per kg, retail prices are hovering between Rs 33-44 per kg depending on the region.
Sugar production at 35.5 MT is highest in the world this year, after discounting diversion of 3.5 MT for ethanol. Diversion to ethanol making and exports have helped mills clear 85 percent of the cane dues amount of Rs 1,09,283 crore in the 2021-22 marketing year, he said.