ISMA in a press release said the all-India sugar production increased 22% to 159.09 lakh tonne as on January 15, from 130.44 lakh tonne in the year-ago period.
The number of operational mills also increased slightly to 518 mills from 500 in the previous year.
Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka were among the top sugar-producing states in the mentioned time frame.
Uttar Pradesh produced 46.05 lakh tonne sugar, up 8% over the last year by the middle of January, ISMA said. Next, Maharashtra reported a higher crushing rate this season, with its sugar production rising to 64.5 lakh tonne, up 51% from the previous year. At present, Maharashtra has 204 mills in operation compared to 196 mills in the year-ago period.
| State | 15-Jan-26 | 15-Jan-25 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 46.05 lakh tonne | 42.82 lakh tonne |
| Maharashtra | 64.5 lakh tonne | 42.71 lakh tonne |
| Karnataka | 31.05 lakh tonne | 27.45 lakh tonne |
| Gujarat | 2.86 lakh tonne | 3.73 lakh tonne |
| Tamil Nadu | 1.85 lakh tonne | 1.3 lakh tonne |
| Others | 11.78 lakh tonne | 12.43 lakh tonne |
| All India | 159.09 lakh tonne | 130.44 lakh tonne |
Karnatata also recorded improved crushing momentum, with sugar production increasing around 13%, ISMA said.
ISMA said that after the sugarcane prices were increased by the governments of Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Haryana, the Bihar government also recently raised the agreed cane price by ₹15 per quintal to ₹380 per quintal.
“While these revisions support farmers, the widening gap between rising cane and sugar production costs and declining ex-mill sugar realisations is placing increasing pressure on mill finances and cane payment cycles,” ISMA said.
At present, the ex-mill sugar prices in Maharashtra and Karnataka have further declined to around ₹3,550 per quintal, which is significantly below the present cost of sugar production, it added.
ISMA said that as the season advances and sugar inventories continue to build, indications suggest that cane payment arrears have begun to increase and may raise further if the present market conditions persist.
The industry is experiencing mounting operational and cash flow stress because of the continued mismatch between cane prices and sugar realisations, ISMA said. “In this context, an early revision of the minimum selling price (MSP) of sugar, aligned with rising production costs, would be critical to restoring financial viability, ensuring timely cane payments to farmers, and maintaining market stability — without imposing any additional fiscal burden on the government,” it added.
Shares of Balrampur Chini Mills, Shree Renuka Sugars, Dalmia Bharat, Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar, EID Parry (India), were trading 1%-2% lower around 1.55 pm on Friday.
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