LAHORE: The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (Punjab Zone) has urged the government to create a permanent window of exporting one million tons of sugar annually as the sugarcane and the production of sugar is increasing every year. Besides, at the international level, Pakistan is currently producing the cheapest sugar.
This was the crux of a general body meeting of Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (Punjab Zone) held on Tuesday which praised the effective measures taken by the government against smuggling of essential commodities. The meeting opined that sugar saved from smuggling can be exported to earn foreign exchange for the country.
Giving details of the meeting, a spokesman of the Association said the IMF is continuously burdening the public in the form of inflation by imposing its terms. If the surplus sugar is exported, the greatest benefit will be transferred to the people, valuable foreign exchange will flow into the country and the government will have to depend less on foreign aid.
The meeting also discussed the letters written by the sugar industry to the federal minister of finance and the federal minister of commerce. According to the contents of the letters, the domestic sugar industry has achieved surplus production of sugar in the recent crushing season 2023-24.
The total available sugar in the current year is 7.5 million metric tons, while the country’s annual consumption is 6.00 million metric tons which shows that Pakistan has surplus sugar of 1.5 million metric tons and can earn 1.2 billion US dollars in foreign exchange.
The meeting further said that as compared to the crushing season of 2022-23, in the current crushing season, sugar mills paid more to buy sugarcane which increased the production cost of sugar. There is an urgent need to formulate a policy to export at least one million metric tons of surplus sugar in two installments without any subsidy so that the exchequer can get the best benefit from the recent good prices in the international market. India’s focus on manufacturing value-added goods rather than exporting sugar has created a demand-supply gap in the international market. The government of Pakistan should take advantage of this opportunity to export surplus sugar.
“The government should allocate a quota of one million tons of sugar export annually because the sugarcane crop will have an increase in next year as well. At the international level, Pakistan is currently producing the cheapest sugar and the country’s sugar industry has given the rate of sugarcane up to Rs 500 per maund this year,” the meeting was of the view.
The sugar industry is currently selling sugar at less than its cost of production, leading the sugar industry to a crisis and bankruptcy. The sugar industry is asking the government to export additional sugar without any subsidies or financial support. Apart from this, foreign exchange can also be earned by exporting by-products of sugar, including ethanol. The sugar industry has also a potential to generate 1,500 to 2,000 MW of electricity, which can provide cheap electricity to the country which can save people’s tax money. In this regard, the government needs to make a comprehensive policy so that the country can benefit from it, the meeting concluded.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024