A fragmented giant, the Indian sugar cane industry has been vying with Brazil for the top spot for much of the last 
decade. In 2006, India produced around nineteen million tonnes of sugar, coming second only to Brazil, and making up ten percent of the global sugar supply with its exports.
In India, sugar is big business, and sugar is the second largest agro-processing industry in India today. It is estimated that there are over forty five million people in India who are involved in the growing of sugar, and that sugar cane crops cover almost four and a half million hectares of land. In many parts of India, sugar is considered to be more than just a sweetening agent, and is consumed in vast quantities as a food stuff. This is especially true for those living rurally, for whom sugar is one of the main staples of their diet.
Growing Sugar In India
Most of the sugar produced in India originates from sugar cane, which is usually planted between January and March each year. Unlike Brazil, which has one major growing region, India’s sugar cane growing regions are scattered throughout the country’s many states, but which can all be categorized into one of two climatic zones, either sub-tropical, or tropical.
Major tropical sugar cane producing states include: Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and also Gujarat.
Major sub-tropical sugar cane producing states include: Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Bihar, Punjab, and also Haryana.
Sugar cane production is much more successful in the tropical states of India, though much work has been undertaken in recent years to find new ways to grow sugar cane more successfully in subtropical climates. On average, India struggles with intemperate climates, poor soil, and rough terrain and produces on average around sixty five tonnes of sugar per hectare, which compares favorably with major countries such as China and the United States of America, but is less than the yields of Brazilian, Australian, and some European sugar cane plantations.
The Monsoon season also has a large impact on Indian sugar cane, in some cases providing much needed rain, but in others flooding sugar cane fields and destroying almost half the crop.
Sugar in India is usually harvested between August and January
The Traditional Indian Sugar Problem
There are three main types of sugar produced in India. There is the refined sugar which is well known and traded on the international market according to ICUMSA standards and ratings, and then there are also traditional sugars known as Gur, which is solidified juice of sugar cane, and Khandsari, which is low grade centrifugal sugar.
Indian sugar refineries face a unique challenge due to the existence of Gur and Khandsari, as the government regulates sugar mills and refineries quite extensively, forcing them to operate within mandatory cost return margins. An Indian sugar mill must pay a government stipulated minimum price for sugar cane, and this price is generally a great deal higher than what a traditional sugar maker would pay for the same cane. They may also only sell their sugar at a certain price, which also puts a squeeze on potential earnings.
Gur and Khandsari are essentially products of cottage industry, and they are not anywhere near as regulated as the sugar mills and can price their products as high or as low as they wish. Some sugar cane growers choose to turn their cane directly over to Gur production as it is a simple and easy way to produce a sugar product that is sure to sell at a price of their own choosing.
As a result of these factors, less than seventy percent of the sugar cane produced in India is channeled into refined sugar production.
Types Of Indian Sugar
Indian Sugar falls into the following categories:
Raw Sugar
Raw sugar is simply sugar that has been extracted from the sugar cane, but which still has molasses surrounding the sugar crystal. It has a deep brown color and is very sticky.
Molasses
Molasses is the sweet brown viscous liquid which covers the sugar crystals and which is drawn off in the refining process. Molasses has many uses including as a ingredient in alcohol production, and as animal feed.
Non Centrifugal Sugar
Non Centrifugal Sugar is known as Gur or Jaggery, and is traditional Indian sugar. This type of sugar is very popular in rural areas of India, as it is both traditional, and can be produced through relatively simple manual labor and does not require a high level of technology to manufacture. Gur is not used in the same fashion as the white sugar that many of us are familiar with (ie, as a sweetening agent), but rather it is consumed as a whole food.
There is also a type of traditional sugar known as Khandsari which does require the use of a centrifuge to make, but this is also carried out in small scale local mills rather than large refineries.
Centrifugal Sugar
Centrifugal Sugar is sugar that has been partially refined by being mixed with a high sugar juice, having crystallized, and then having had most of the molasses spun off in the centrifuge.
Refined White Sugar
This is sugar which has undergone the centrifugal process and has gone on through the refining process. Depending on how much refining it undergoes, it may be the sparkling white ICUMSA 45 which is well known as a sweetener in developed countries, or it may be less refined, ranging from ICUMSA 50 to ICUMSA 150.
Indian Sugar Prices
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