Ukraine experts predict 35% drop in sugar exports

As reported, Sri Lanka was the major consumer of Ukrainian sugar in MY 2016 – 2017, having imported 112,200 tonnes of the product worth $56.7 million. It was followed by Georgia and Turkey, which imported 47,900 tonnes and 42,500 tonnes of sugar, respectively. In addition, Ukrainian producers made significant deliveries to African countries. Thus, Ukrainian sugar shipments to Libya were estimated at $21.4 million, while those to Cote d'Ivoire at $16.2 million, and $15.1 to Egypt.

Ukraine was able to significantly increase sugar exports in MY 2016-2017 due to a shortage of the product on the world market, the press service said.

Read alsoSugar exports from Ukraine soar six times since Sept 2016"Given that there was a shortage [of sugar] in the world in the last marketing year, Ukrainian sugar producers increased their shipments to foreign markets. Thus, they exported a record 767,300 tonnes of sugar worth $377.8 million in the 2016-2017 MY, entering the Top 10 world sugar exporters ranking," the press service quoted head of the association's analytical department Ruslana Butylo.

In addition, a significant reorientation of sales markets for domestic product took place in the previous season, when Ukrainian sugar was bought even by those countries that usually consumed cane sugar.

As UNIAN reported, Ukrainian enterprises during the sugar refining season (August 20, 2016 – January 11, 2017) exported 344,000 tonnes of sugar, which was 33 times up y-o-y, according to the Agrarian Policy Ministry estimates. During this period, they processed 13.7 million tonnes of sugar beets and produced 2.01 million tonnes of sugar, although the domestic market demand for 2017 was estimated at 1.54 million tonnes of sugar, according to Ukrtsukor. Some 42 sugar refineries were in operation in Ukraine during the sugar refining season.