‘No sugar shortage in country’

The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) has categorically rejected the assumption of a looming threat of sugar shortage in the country. In a statement on Thursday, a PSMA spokesman said that at present, sugar mills were not running on their full capacity.

Citing reasons, he said that some people in the market were allegedly pressurising the retailers to sell imported sugar instead of locally produced one because they wanted foreign sugar to circulate in the market.

Moreover, farmers are yet to completely harvest sugarcane, he said.

He underlined that at present, farmers were harvesting the cotton crop in southern Punjab to make space for the sowing of wheat.

On the other hand, farmers in central Punjab were busy harvesting rice and corn crops, he added.

“After completion of harvesting of these crops, farmers will start picking sugarcane,” the spokesman highlighted.

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According to him, sugar mills were trying their best to sell locally produced sweeteners in the market to ensure timely disbursement of payments to the farmers, he revealed.

The spokesman underlined that the industry had warned the government that if sugar mills operated before the scheduled time, then the segment would face mammoth losses on the back of raw material shortage ie sugarcane.

Sugar mills had to crush low ripe sugarcane on furnace oil, which dealt a massive financial blow to the industry, he said.

“Despite the losses, the sugar industry is fully cooperating with the government,” he added.

“The segment wants to go along with the federal and provincial government so that the industry, farmers, masses and government can avert any future crisis,” he stated.