Photo from UNIAN
Ukrainian enterprises had produced 2.05 million tonnes of sugar and processed 14.3 million tonnes of sugar beet as of January 23, 2018.
Ukraine in 2017 exported 598,700 tonnes of sugar worth US$279.9 million, which was 29% up on 465,600 tonnes in 2016.
Head of Ukraine's National Association of Sugar Producers Analytical Department Ruslana Butylo says the geography of sugar exports changed in 2017, according to the Association's press service.
The major importers of Ukrainian sugar in 2017 were Sri Lanka (69,030 tonnes), Turkey (49,100 tonnes), Azerbaijan (44,900 tonnes), Sudan (40,000 tonnes), and Libya (39,900 tonnes), whereas Sri Lanka, Georgia, Tunisia, Romania and Egypt were the major consumer of Ukrainian sugar in 2016.
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"This year was not very favorable for domestic exporters, as prices on the foreign market were lower. Moreover, weather conditions affected the quality of sugar beets, resulting in low sugar content. However, Ukraine could still implement all the planned contracts," the expert summed up.
As reported, Ukrainian enterprises had produced 2.05 million tonnes of sugar and processed 14.3 million tonnes of sugar beet as of January 23, 2018. Since the beginning of the production season, 46 sugar plants have operated in Ukraine, of which three continue to refine sugar.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the current sugar refining season was launched on August 30, 2017.
Ukrainian enterprises during the sugar refining season (August 20, 2016 – January 11, 2017) exported 344,000 tonnes of sugar, which was 3 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.
In the 2015-2016 MY, agrarians exported 132,200 tonnes of sugar.