Pakistan : Sugar mills hint at delay in crushing
Pakistan’s sugar mills may delay the 2026-27 crushing season amid a 1.25-million-tonne surplus and expected 1.5 million tonnes of additional production. PSMA seeks immediate approval to export at least 1 million tonnes, warning continued stocks could cause financial losses and delay farmer payments.
LAHORE: The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) has hinted at delaying the upcoming sugarcane crushing season due to a massive surplus of sugar in the country, demanding immediate permission to export one million tonnes to avert a crisis.
Due to severe losses from what they called low sugar prices and the burden of holding surplus stocks, sugar millers are now contemplating to delay the upcoming crushing season as much as possible. The millers want to first sell the excess sugar of last season and then start cane crushing from the 2026-27 crop. Otherwise, they said, they will not be able to make timely payments to farmers. This will also lead to financial losses, they warned.
Addressing a press conference at a local hotel in Lahore on Wednesday, Chairperson of the PSMA Chaudhry Zaka Ashraf said “the country is sitting on a surplus stock of 1.25 million tonnes”.
The PSMA chairperson said the sugarcane crop has been excellent this year. The favourable weather conditions have resulted in a significant increase in sugar production, but this bumper crop has now become a liability.
Giving details, Ashraf said at the start of the previous crushing season on November 16, 2025, there was a stock of 271,000 tonnes. Data till August 31, 2026 shows that about 7.7 million tonnes of sugar has been produced so far this year. Combined, the total availability reached around eight million tonnes.
With the country’s monthly consumption at about 560,000 tonnes, even after meeting domestic needs till November 15, 2026, a surplus of 1.25 million tonnes will still be available at the start of the 2026-27 crushing season. On top of this, another 1.5 million tonnes of surplus is expected from the upcoming crop. If both are combined, the stockpile will become unmanageable.
The PSMA chief said the government has decided to export 108,000 tonnes of previously imported sugar and has allowed export of only 200,000 tonnes from domestic production. He termed this quantity grossly insufficient and said it will not solve the problem.
He urged the government to immediately allow export of at least one million tonnes to save farmers and the sugar industry from ruin, keeping in view the recommendations of the IMF and the Prime Minister’s committee. He said this step will not only protect growers and millers but also help the country earn valuable foreign exchange.
Ashraf said the sugar industry is the second-largest agro-based industry after textiles and Pakistan is the sixth-largest sugar producing country. The industry provides employment to hundreds of thousands of people, generates over Rs1,000 billion in annual business activities and contributes about Rs300 billion in taxes.
The PSMA chief claimed another surplus of 1.5 million tonnes is expected to be produced in the upcoming season (2026-27), stressing a permanent sugar export policy to ensure viability of the whole sector.
He complained that despite repeated assurances of deregulation, the industry remains the most heavily regulated. While 70 per cent of sugar used in commercial and industrial sectors is deregulated, sugar for domestic consumption is still regulated with provincial governments fixing ex-mill prices.
He said sugarcane prices have been deregulated, allowing growers to get good returns, but sugar prices remain controlled. Partial deregulation is creating serious problems, and the solution is to deregulate sugar prices as well and allow free import and export.
He said Pakistan has the potential to produce 15 million tonnes of sugar annually in a 150-day crushing season without fresh investment. Out of this, eight million tonnes can be exported to earn $4 billion, while ethanol can fetch another $1 billion. Central Asia, Afghanistan and China are big markets where India is capitalising despite Pakistan’s proximity and lower transport cost, he added.
To Read more about Sugar Industry continue reading Agriinsite.com
Source : International The News
