Maharashtra’s sugar output plummets by 29L tonnes in 2024-25

Kolhapur: Shorter cane crushing season in 2024-25 has marked a significant drop of 29 lakh tonnes in Maharashtra's sugar production compared to the past year.According to the sugar commissionerate office in Pune, the season, which commenced on Nov 15, saw 200 sugar mills in operation. These mills collectively produced 81 lakh tonnes of sugar — a substantial decrease of around 29 lakh tonnes from the 110 lakh tonnes produced in the 2023-24 season when as many as 208 mills were functional.The total sugar cane crushed by these mills in 2024-25 amounted to 850 lakh tonnes, down from the 1,070 lakh tonnes crushed in the previous season. Furthermore, the average sugar recovery rate also declined, from 10.27% to 9.5%.The duration of the crushing season was notably shorter this year, with mills operating for a maximum of 90 days, significantly lower than the average of 130-150 days seen in previous years. The conclusion of crushing activities was staggered across the months: 11 mills finished in Jan, 95 in Feb, 89 in March, 4 in April and one in May. The official declaration of the season's end was on May 14.Vijay Autade, a sugar industry expert from Kolhapur, highlighted the financial implications of this shorter season and reduced recovery. "The decline in average crushing days, being one of the lowest recorded, poses a risk to the financial stability of sugar mills. The drop in crushing resulted in an estimated loss of Rs10,700 crore for the mills as compared to the previous year, while the lower sugar recovery rate contributed to an additional loss of Rs2,960 crore.The reduced profitability has left very few mills in a position to pay farmers the fair and remunerative price (FRP) for their sugar cane," he said. He added, "Rainfall was abrupt last year. When the rains were needed, especially at the maturation stage, the weather remained dry. This impacted the growth of sugar cane. The cane matured early, leading to a dip in the per acre tonnage of the crop and thereby the sugar production."Experts and millers are now demanding that the sugar's minimum support price should be increased to Rs 42 per kg, with an equivalent increase in the ethanol procurement rates. Recently, the Centre once again increased the FRP, while it has not changed the MSP for the last five years. "The mill owners will also seek restructuring of the loans and additional funds to keep up with the maintenance cost of the machinery," said Autade.