The sugar industry has urged the government to allow the export of 2.0 million tons of sugar in the 2025–26 season. The appeal was made during the 3rd edition of ‘The India Sugar & Bio-Energy Conference’, currently underway in New Delhi, organized by the Indian Sugar & Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA).
During the event, ISMA President Gautam Goel said, “We humbly requests government to permit the export of 2.0 million tons of sugar in 2025–26, with an early policy announcement, so that mills can contract forward, secure better prices, plan their production and maintain market balance.”
He thanked the government for the decision taken in January 2025 to permit the export of 1 million tons of sugar. This timely step brought immediate liquidity into sector and ensured that mills could pay farmers on time. Cane arrears, which have been a recurring worry for years, were reduced to just about Rs.5,529 crores as of August 01, 2025, the lowest level in recent memory.
Goel said that the outlook for new season is both promising and challenging. Based on satellite images procured in June and September 2025, combined with field reports and rainfall assessments, ISMA estimates gross sugar production in 2025–26 at 34.90 million tons— about 18 percent higher than current year’s 29.50 million tons.
“Across the country, sugarcane crops are in healthy condition, supported by favorable rainfall, improved water availability, and sustained farmer initiatives. With better yields and recoveries expected, the industry is poised for a strong and stable sugar season ahead. Sugar balance sheet is healthy, after meeting domestic consumption of around 28.4 million tons, we will still have around 12 million tons available for ethanol diversion, exports, and buffer stock. This is a sizeable surplus, and it underscores the importance of careful policy interventions to ensure that this abundance does not turn into distress,” he added.
He applauded the recent decision of Government to allow unrestricted production of ethanol from sugarcane juice, B heavy molasses and c heavy molasses in 2025-26 ESY as it has given a positive signal of Governments support to the industry. Accordingly, next season, Sugar industry has the potential to produce/supply around 4.5- 5 billion litres of ethanol from the sugar sector alone, by diverting around 5 million tons of sugar.
The ISMA President also highlighted that ethanol procurement prices, unchanged since 2022–23, need to be aligned with rising cane costs. Without this balance, the diversion programme could lose momentum. Unless prices are revised, the stability of diversion will be at risk, leading to surplus sugar in the domestic market.
He further urged the government to the govt to revised Minimum selling Price (MSP) of sugar, which has remained unchanged since 2019 despite a steady rise in cane prices. While sugarcane costs have risen significantly, the selling price of sugar has not kept pace. This imbalance creates financial stress for mills and affects their ability to make timely payments to farmers. Unless the MSP is revised and automatically linked to cane prices, arrears will inevitably rise, threatening both mill operations and farmer incomes.
