Farmers' leader warns of protests over early sugar crushing and demands higher prices

Mill Protests

Farmers' leader and former MP Raju Shetti alleged on Wednesday in Kolhapur that sugar mill owners are rushing to start crushing cane early due to fear of ED and CBI probes and pressure from the ruling government. He stated that the government is worried that sugar prices might reach ₹100 due to shortages, and warned mill owners not to start operations before November.

Demands And Losses

Mr. Shetti demanded that the minimum support price of sugar be hiked to ₹50, ethanol price to ₹70, and sugarcane MSP to ₹5,000, warning that mills should stay shut until then. He cautioned that crushing immature cane with only eight per cent recovery will reduce both weight and recovery, causing farmers a heavy loss per acre, and threatened a weighbridge shutdown agitation if mills open early.

Government Advice

Mr. Shetti objected to the early crushing because the Fair and Remunerative Price for the 2026-27 season has been set at ₹365 per quintal at a 10.25% recovery rate, and he was responding to the Centre's advice for mills to begin crushing from October 15, 2026. A PIB statement noted this aims to raise October sugar production from 3 to 4 lakh metric tonnes to over 10 lakh metric tonnes to improve festive availability.

Market Details

India produces around 300 to 340 lakh metric tonnes of sugar annually against a domestic consumption of 280 to 290 lakh metric tonnes. Sugar prices rose from ₹48.18 per kg on July 20 to ₹55.70 per kg on August 20, driven by lower production, festive demand, weather damage, tight global supplies, speculation, and hoarding, while current production is expected to reach about 306 lakh metric tonnes.

Context

Sugarcane pricing and crushing schedules are recurring points of discussion between agricultural leaders and government bodies in key farming regions like Maharashtra. Seasonal recovery rates and festival-season supply management frequently influence when sugar mills are advised to begin their operations each year.