Ukraine’s sugar exports grow almost fivefold - Ukrtsukor

Ukrinform reports this with reference to the press service of the Ukrtsukor National Association of Sugar Producers of Ukraine.

"As of the beginning of the war, the export of sugar from Ukraine was banned due to the start of hostilities. However, on June 5, 2022, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved a resolution to allow sugar exports under licenses issued by the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine. In the 2021/2022 MY, 55,000 tonnes of sugar were exported. From September 1, 2022 to March 28, 2023, Ukraine increased exports by 4.8 times, to 265,000 tonnes," said acting Ukrtsukor Board Chairman Nazar Mykhailovyn.

According to him, in the current season, the geography of Ukrainian sugar exports has changed. In particular, according to the EU decision, Ukraine can now ship sugar without tariff quotas and duties. Europe experienced drought last year and, therefore, poor harvest of sugar beets. In addition, the cost of natural gas in Europe was much higher than in Ukraine. Consequently, Europe produced less sugar and its price was higher than Ukrainian.

"Due to combat actions and the lack of seaports, Ukraine managed to sell sugar decently in Europe. We export sugar by road, which caused logistical difficulties. Thanks to the government's assistance in opening new checkpoints and railway tracks, these problems were solved," he added.

According to Ukrtsukor, Ukraine produced 1.33 million tonnes of sugar in 2022, which is 120,000 tonnes less than in 2021.

"In 2022, taking into account the area under sugar beet and the number of operating refineries, 1,330 million tonnes of sugar were produced. Compared with the pre-war year, 1,450 million tonnes of sugar were produced. A decrease by 120,000 tonnes because of a 30% idle production capacity was not critical for Ukraine," Mykhailovyn said.

He also noted that transitional balances from the 2021/22 fiscal year (from September 1, 2021 to September 1, 2022) reached 491,000 tonnes.

He explained that before the war, the Ukrainian domestic market demand, according to balance calculations and data from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, totaled 1.15 million tonnes per annum. Since the full-scale invasion, domestic consumption has decreased due to the outflow of a large number of people from Ukraine abroad. In addition, many food industry enterprises that purchased sugar are now in occupied territories, or they were destroyed.