The country's sugar production is expected to decline by 12.38 percent to 28-29 million tonnes in the 2019-20 marketing season starting this month, due to sharp fall in the output in Maharashtra, a senior Food Ministry official said on October 24.
Sugar output stood at 33.1 million tonnes during the 2018-19 marketing year (October-September).
"After taking inputs from the sugarcane growing states, total sugar output for the current year has been pegged at 28-29 million tonnes," the official told PTI.
"There would be at least 4 million tonnes decline in Maharasthra's sugar output this year," the official added.
Sugar mills have partially started crushing operation, but will commence in full swing from November 15 onwards. There are about 534 sugar mills in the country.
The government has fixed fair and remunerative price (FRP) of sugarcane at Rs 275/quintal for the current marketing year.
The FRP is the minimum price that sugarcane farmers are legally guaranteed to get from sugar mills. The crop, which has a more than 10 percent recovery rate, will get an additional Rs 2.75 per quintal for every 0.1 percent increase.
Farmers in many states such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra, are paid on the basis of the FRP set by the Centre. Others, in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu etc, have a State Advised Price.
It may be noted that sugarcane production is also estimated to be lower at 377.77 million tonnes in the 2019-20 crop year (July-June) as against 400 million tonnes last year, as per the Agriculture Ministry's first estimate.
Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka are other two major sugar producing states in the country.