Pakistan: Sugar millers refuse to start crushing before Dec
Pakistan’s Sugar Mills Association decided to delay the new crushing season until December, citing 1.1 million tonnes of surplus stocks despite an approved but pending export quota. The association will seek permission to export 400,000 tonnes and immediate sugar sector deregulation.
LAHORE: The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) on Wednesday decided by consensus that the new crushing season would not be started before December. The consensus in this connection emerged during a meeting of the PSMA General Body held simultaneously in Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad.
Attending the meeting, mill owners from Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa said the country still had a huge surplus of sugar. Even after the approved export of 200,000 tonnes, about 1.1 million metric tonnes of surplus still lies in godowns.
They said the government had not yet allowed the export of the agreed quota and in the given situation, new crushing season could not be started.
The meeting gave full powers to the executive committee to approach the government with two demands: 1. Early permission to export 400,000 metric tons of surplus sugar. 2. Immediate announcement of the long-awaited deregulation policy for the sugar sector
The general body said deregulation had now become unavoidable. Another big surplus is expected by the end of the 2026-27 crushing season.
Without timely action, stocks will keep piling up and the financial pressure on the industry will increase.
The meeting also decided that mill owners will hold a press conference in Lahore on November 16 to announce their future course of action. It was also proposed that PSMA write a formal letter to the deputy prime minister and seek a meeting to inform him about the challenges facing the industry.
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Source : International The News
