Sugar prices still too high for the poor

LAHORE – Consumers are still purchasing sugar at inflated prices despite an overall reduction. Millers and farmers accuse each other for higher prices, Pakistan Today has found on Tuesday. The millers stated that they are buying sugarcane at very high price and as a result the prices of sugar are high while the farmers claim they are being paid a very low price for their produce and stress there is no justifiable reason that sugar prices are still so high. Sugar is being sold for Rs 65-70 per kg in the open market. Three months ago, the price of sugar touched Rs 95-100 per kg. The government for the current year has fixed sugarcane procurement price at Rs 135 per 40 kg.
Farmers Association Pakistan Director and Honorary Chief Coordinator Tariq Bucha noted that if farmers need spot payment then millers compensate them with Rs 120-125 per 40 kg. “If farmers give the sugarcane at credit then the price is Rs 140-150 per 40 kg,” he said adding the millers do not pay the farmers in time and delay the payments.
He pointed out that the sugar mills owe at least Rs 5.0 billion of the farmers. He said if sugarcane price is between Rs 120 and 125 per 40 kg, then the price of sugar should not be more than Rs 30 per kg. “The millers are making huge profits and the government should ask them to lower sugar prices,” he stated, adding that the claim of millers to offer a rate of Rs 200 per 40 kg for sugarcane to the farmers is totally baseless. He stressed that earlier it had been forecast that sugarcane production would remain low with sugarcane prices increasing but now output is quite good and prices are not rising with millers still claiming to pay a high price for produce to the farmers.
Agri Forum Pakistan Chairman Ibrahim Mughal said farmers are not getting government announced rate for sugarcane and are being paid only Rs 120-125 per 40 kg. “The mills ask the farmers for delivery to the factory and freight charges cost around Rs 20-30 per 40 kg thus farmers get only Rs 120-125 per 40 kg,” Mughal said adding the millers are not paying cash and hold the payments of the farmers. He said if sugarcane price is Rs 150 per 40 kg then sugar price should remain Rs 40 per kg. He said the millers are not paying Rs 200 per 40 kg for sugarcane and there is no reality in this claim.
Pakistan Sugar Mills Association former Chairman Iskander Muhammad Khan said the claims of farmers are totally wrong, as millers are offering rates of Rs 200-220 per 40 kg to farmers. He claimed that average price of sugarcane for the season have remained at least Rs 200 per 40 kg but the farmers are unjustifiably attacking millers. “The farmers want to hide their income and are making false claims over the price,” he said, adding that if price of sugarcane is Rs 210 per 40 kg then with nine percent recovery, sugar price would be Rs 65 per kg.
“The sugarcane recovery in different areas of the country not exceed than eight percent,” he said adding sugar is being sold at Rs 65 per kg. He underlined millers are not even meeting their production costs,” he said adding that till February 15, around 2.5 million tonnes of sugar is being produced by the mills and average sugarcane price remained more than Rs 200 per 40 kg. Khan said if the government has stopped Gur export than at least 100 tonnes of sugar could be produced. The current Chairman Javed Kayani was unavailable for comment.