PSMA urges govt to allow export of surplus sugar worth $500m

Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) has written to Deputy Prime Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar seeking permission to export surplus sugar, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Monday.

The letter was addressed to a cabinet committee formed under Dar's chairmanship specifically to decide on the matter.

During the crushing season 2025–26, Pakistan's sugar industry produced sugar far in excess of local needs.

Total domestic stocks have reached 7.9 MMT, while annual consumption stands at only 6.6 MMT after factoring in population growth, creating a massive surplus of 1.3 MMT even after setting aside one month's strategic reserve.

The association pointed out that exporting this surplus could earn Pakistan nearly $500 million in much-needed foreign exchange and help ease the current account deficit.

PSMA stressed that this is not a new crisis. The association has repeatedly warned the federal government that surplus sugar stocks inevitably trigger financial crises first for the sugar mills, and then for the sugarcane growers who depend on them.

With market prices falling well below the cost of production due to the ongoing glut, mills are suffering severe cash flow shortfalls.

This has left them unable to repay bank loan installments on time or clear remaining payments owed to farmers.

The situation is made more critical by the success of recent seasons.

Timely and better payments to sugarcane farmers over the past two years had encouraged growers to invest in quality inputs and improved varieties, boosting both per-acre yield and sugar recovery.

As a result, another record sugarcane crop is now expected, which would generate yet another surplus of nearly 2m MT, valued between $1.5 to $2 billion.

In light of the rapidly shifting geopolitical situation, PSMA Chairman Ch. Muhammad Zaka Ashraf humbly requested that an early meeting of the cabinet committee be convened and that a PSMA delegation be allowed to attend to present their grievances in person.

A copy of the letter was also forwarded to the Secretary of the Ministry of Industries and Production, Government of Pakistan, Islamabad.

Reporter: Ashraf Khan