Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday advocated for the use of Poly Lactic Acid (PLA), stating that it can help address issues in the sugar industry, including excess sugar production, pricing challenges, and more.
While speaking at an event in Mumbai, he said, “For entire year, our biggest problem is how to manage the concerns of sugar industry. As we all know, sugar prices today are largely determined by the international market, especially by Brazil and a few other countries. The entire economy of farmers dependent on the sugar industry also needs to be protected. That’s why we offer Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP), and I believe Uttar Pradesh offers a State Advised Price (SAP). This is the only industry where sometimes the remuneration for raw material is more than the selling price of finished product. And that is why, the industry sometimes feels the brunt. However, I believe that recently, due to the policies of the Government of India, there has been encouragement for byproducts. Industries that have distilleries, are involved in ethanol production, or have cogeneration units can still manage to survive. But I think many times the problem becomes bigger when we have excess sugar production.”
“Many times, to maintain retail sugar prices, the Government of India has to impose restrictions on sugar exports, and I believe that is when the sugar industry faces a lot of problems,” he further added.
Fadnavis concluded, “I believe PLA now offers a solution to all these issues—excess sugar, pricing problems, and more—all of which can be effectively addressed through this new technology.”
