India's sugar exports may cross 80 lakh tons, surpassing previous year level: Food Secretary

India's sugar exports are expected to cross 80 lakh tonnes in the ongoing 2021-22 marketing year ending September, surpassing the previous year's level, Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey said on Friday.

During the 2020-21 marketing year, the country exported a record 72.3 lakh tonnes of sweetener. The maximum shipments were undertaken with the help of a government subsidy.

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The sugar marketing year runs from October to September. Sugar exports this year are being undertaken without the government subsidy.

"We are doing good on the sugar export front. We will go past 80 lakh tonnes this year, crossing even the previous year's level," Pandey told reporters.

As per the data maintained by the trade body All India Sugar Trade Association (AISTA), sugar mills have exported a total of 58.10 lakh tonnes of sugar from October 2021 to April 7 this year.

Of this, 49.60 lakh tonnes of sugar shipments have been exported by sugar mills and merchant exporters directly, and 8.50 lakh tonnes of sugar has been delivered to Indian refineries for refining and export which is considered as deemed export, it said.

India is the world's second-largest sugar producer after Brazil.