Sugar prices cool after government crackdown, ex-mill rates fall 18% in a week

Sugar prices at the factory gate have fallen sharply over the past week after the government allowed imports and tightened checks on hoarding and speculation, even as the decline is yet to fully reach consumers.Ex-mill sugar prices have dropped 18% to around ₹55 per kg from ₹67 last week, Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra told PTI. He expects prices to ease further in the coming days.“Ex-mill price of sugar, which were jacked up by mills, have started cooling down. They have declined to ₹55 per kg and will further drop in the coming days,” Chopra said.The government maintains that last week’s price surge wasn’t justified by the supply situation, despite a reduction in expected sugar production for the current marketing year.Sugar output is now estimated at 306 lakh tonnes in the October-September 2025-26 marketing year, down from an earlier estimate of 343 lakh tonnes. That would still be above India’s annual domestic consumption of around 280-285 lakh tonnes.Also read: Kanda Express to bring 800 tonnes to Delhi as Centre sets onion price at ₹35/kgImports, stock limits bring prices downThe Centre last week announced a series of measures aimed at cooling the market.It allowed imports of 10 lakh tonnes of raw sugar, imposed stock limits on bulk consumers and asked states to increase inspections to check hoarding and speculative activity.National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) Managing Director Prakash Naiknavare told PTI that ex-mill sugar prices were now at or below ₹55 per kg across states.He said flying squads had been deployed to check hoarding and that the government’s measures had helped contain the price increase. Ex-mill prices could fall further, he added.The difference between ex-mill and wholesale sugar prices is typically around ₹2-3 per kg, while retail prices are generally ₹7-8 higher than ex-mill rates, according to Naiknavare.Also read: SC protects journalist who exposed Ayodhya Ram temple donation row from arrestConsumers haven’t seen the full benefit yetWhile prices at sugar mills have fallen sharply, the decline has yet to fully filter through to shops.The all-India average wholesale price of sugar stood at ₹58.29 per kg as of August 24, while the average retail price was ₹63.05 per kg, according to Consumer Affairs Ministry data.That gap means the government’s measures appear to have cooled prices at the producer level first, with consumers still waiting for the decline to show up fully at the retail level.

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