Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) Punjab Zone is likely to hold a meeting with Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif to discuss the minimum purchase price for sugarcane for the coming season. PSMA Punjab Zone might be giving a presentation to the Chief Minister Punjab on present sugar stock position, crop situation, forecast of sugar production for the coming crushing season and its reservations in case the support price is fixed higher than its proposal.
PSMA Punjab Zone newly elected Chairman Riaz Qadeer Butt while talking to Business Recorder here on Tuesday said they had an informal meeting with the principal secretary of the Chief Minister Punjab regarding announcement of support price. Butt was accompanied by former PSMA Chairman Javed Kayani and executive members from Punjab.
"The government intends to fix it at Rs 175 per maund while the PSMA-Punjab wants it at around Rs 165 per maund, which will not only help the industry to remain competitive in the export market but also not result in any higher jump in the prices of the commodity in the domestic market," Butt added.
In support of his claim, Butt said that when government fixed support price at Rs 165 per maund, millers never bought the cane at same price whole season. "It is implemented only in the beginning and as the season progress prices rise and on average a mill buy sugarcane from Rs 175 to 180 per maund, while if the support price is fixed at Rs 175 in the beginning, millers average buying would be around Rs 200 per maund and above."
He said the Association was campaigning for Rs 165 as it was still Rs 15 per maund higher than the current support price. He said at this price, industry would remain competitive in the international export market and also help it to clear the dues of the sugarcane growers.
Riaz Qadeer Butt said the industry had cleared 99.5 percent dues of the growers of the current season. He claimed that crop this year was again bumper and area under cane sowing is 1.13 million hectares against 1.057 million hectares of previous year. He said yield estimated was 64 million tons and mills would receive 56 million tons producing five million tons of sugar. This means sugar production will again be surplus as our total consumption is not more than 4.337 million tons. Talking about current stock situation, he said sugar in Punjab was sufficient and we might consume it till December, adding that at present stocks in Punjab was not more than 900,000 tons.