Sugarcane in Peril: Climate Change in Pakistan Threatens Sindh’s Agricultural Lifeline
Climate change is impacting sugarcane production in Tando Allahyar and Mirpurkhas, causing lower yields and quality. The Sindh government’s SWAT Project and private initiatives like Mehran Sugar Mills’ ratoon management and mechanization aim to enhance sustainability. Collaboration, innovation, and farmer education are crucial to ensuring long-term resilience in Pakistan’s sugar industry amid rising climate challenges.
ISLAMABAD: Climate change continues to significantly impact sugarcane production in Pakistan, particularly in the Tando Allahyar and Mirpurkhas districts of Sindh province, where its impacts are most evident. Rising temperatures, erratic rainfall patterns, and extreme weather events have adversely affected crop yields and quality in these regions.
Rising temperatures
Located in southeastern Sindh, Tando Allahyar and Mirpurkhas districts are predominantly agricultural areas. The climate is characterised by high temperatures, often exceeding 46°C during peak summer months, and variable rainfall patterns.
In the last five years, these districts have experienced increased frequency of extreme weather events, including heatwaves with temperatures rising from 43°C in 2020 to 45°C in 2024—compared to the historical average of 35°C to 36°C. Additionally, unseasonal heavy rainfall averaging 40.64 mm during August 2024 has further disrupted traditional farming practices.
As of the 2023 census, Tando Allahyar district had a population of 922,012, with a significant portion engaged in agriculture. The region is known for cultivating cash crops such as sugarcane, wheat, onions, and cotton. However, climate-induced challenges have led to notable impacts:
Effects on Sugarcane
Inconsistent rainfall and prolonged dry spells have stressed water resources, leading to a decline in sugarcane yields. While specific yield data for 2023–2025 is not yet available, historical trends indicate a downward trajectory in productivity. For example, in the 2023-24 season, Pakistan’s sugarcane production experienced a slight decline, with national output decreasing by 0.4 per cent to 87.6 million tonnes, down from 88.0 million tonnes in the 2022-23.
Additionally, unseasonal heavy rains have caused waterlogging and soil erosion, which has degraded soil quality and adversely affected crop health.
Besides, warmer temperatures have prolonged crop maturity cycle, turning the heat up on farmers by leading to lower sugar content at the time of crop harvest, further reducing crop yields.
Government initiatives
In response to these challenges, the Sindh government launched the Sindh Water and Agricultural Transformation (SWAT) Project in December 2024. The initiative aims at enhancing agricultural efficiency and mitigate climate impacts across nine districts, including Mirpurkhas and Tando Muhammad Khan.
Key components of the project include constructing 185 new watercourses, lining 500 existing ones, and training over 14,575 farmers—emphasising efficient water use, optimised fertilisation, and improved crop productivity.
The project also offers smart subsidies such as rehabilitation of degraded rangelands, integrated water resource management and promotion of sustainable agricultural practices, covering 100,000 acres. It also promotes the adoption of drip irrigation systems on 900 acres.
Further, in February 2025, the provincial government introduced ‘Climate Smart Technology’ to address climate change impacts on agriculture. The initiative encompasses establishing a modern Maximum Residual Level (MRL) laboratory to prevent the spread of diseases, promoting timely crop cultivation, and testing pesticide residues in agricultural commodities.
The technology aims at conserving 25 to 30 per cent of water used in wheat cultivation and increase yield by 10 to 15 per cent. Additionally, double-row planting methods for wheat and sugarcane could reduce seed usage by 60 per cent, and cultivating low-water crops like mustard offers viable alternatives during droughts.
Giving farmers a fighting chance
Pakistan’s sugar industry, a key contributor to the economy, is walking a tightrope owing to climate change, rising input costs, and declining sugar recoveries, the amount of actual sugar obtained from the sugarcane plant. With sugarcane cultivation spread across 1.2 million hectares and total sugar production reaching 6.84 million metric tons in crushing season of 2023-24, improving efficiency and sustainability has never been more critical.
Recognising this, private sector—especially Mehran Sugar Mills Ltd (MSML)—are stepping up to the plate with research-driven solutions, financial support, and advanced agricultural practices to help farmers navigate these challenges.
One major hurdle in sugarcane farming is ratoon management. While sugarcane has the potential for three to four ratoon cycles, most growers in Sindh struggle to maintain productivity beyond two cycles due to a common trend of intercropping, leading to increased costs for replanting and reduced profitability. A structured Ratoon Management Program has been introduced by MSML to promote better practices, allowing farmers to extend their ratoon cycles while maintaining yield and sugar recovery.
Farming the modern way
Another pressing issue is the low sugar recovery from non-variety sugarcane plantations—particularly NSG-059—which remains widely cultivated despite its inefficiencies. This variety yields significantly lower sugar recovery rates in Punjab (9 per cent) compared to Sindh’s 9.5 per cent average, creating substantial losses for both farmers and millers.
To counter this, initiatives promoting the adoption of high-yielding, disease-free varieties have been launched by MSML, ensuring better returns for growers and improving overall sector performance.
Mechanisation is also playing a transformative role in modernising sugarcane farming. Traditional methods such as crop burning contribute heavily to environmental pollution and smog, worsening air quality across the country. The introduction of trash mulchers helps farmers retain organic matter in the soil instead of burning it, reducing carbon emissions and improving soil fertility.
Similarly, sugarcane stubble shavers are enhancing ratoon crop management, while drones, introduced in the region for the first time last year, have optimised pesticide and fertiliser application, reducing input costs by 20–30 per cent and improving efficiency.
In addition to mechanisation, sustainable pest control methods are being actively promoted Sugar producing companies purchase modern machines at their own cost and provide them to farmers, giving them a leg up in adopting mechanised solutions.
A Biological Control Laboratory has also been established by MSML to develop eco-friendly pest management solutions by breeding Trichogramma wasps and Chrysoperla carnea, which naturally target sugarcane borers.
Given that Pakistan applies over 150,000 metric tonnes of pesticides annually, this initiative is a crucial step toward reducing chemical dependency and promoting a healthier agricultural ecosystem.
Farmer education & innovation
Beyond technology and pest control, farmer education remains a cornerstone of long-term agricultural success. Regular training sessions, field days, and seminars are being conducted at the village level, equipping growers with knowledge on climate-resilient practices, improved irrigation techniques, and sustainable crop management.
These initiatives not only increase sugarcane productivity but also strengthen rural economies and contribute to national food security.
As Pakistan’s sugar industry faces increasing economic and environmental pressures, the role of the private sector in driving innovation and resilience is more important than ever. By investing in research, mechanisation, and farmer training, the sector is working toward a more profitable, sustainable, and climate-adaptive future.
However, for these efforts to have a lasting impact, collaboration between the government, industry stakeholders, and farmers must continue to expand, ensuring that Pakistan’s sugarcane sector remains competitive in an evolving global landscape.
To put it simply, the period from 2023 to 2025 underscores the pressing need for comprehensive strategies to combat the adverse effects of climate change on sugarcane production in Tando Allahyar and Mirpurkhas. While government initiatives such as the SWAT Project and Climate Smart Technology and efforts by private sector represent significant steps toward building climate resilience, their success hinges on effective implementation and collaboration among stakeholders. Empowering local farmers through education and resources is crucial to ensure the sustainability of sugarcane production in these vital agricultural regions.
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Source : We News English
