Thai sugar output could fall as much as 12.5% next season
Sugar production in Thailand, the world's second-largest exporter of the commodity after Brazil, is ‌expected to fall 12.5% to 10.5 million tonnes in the 2026/27 season, an industry official said.
Thailand, the world's second-largest exporter of sugar, is expected to see its sugar output drop by as much as 12.5% next season, according to an industry official. The forecasted decline is attributed to drought, higher input costs, and farmers shifting towards cassava cultivation. Thawat Hamarn, director of strategy and planning at the Office of the Cane and Sugar Board, explained that sugarcane output is projected to decrease by 9.5% to approximately 95 million tonnes from the previous season's 105 million tonnes.
Farmers have been facing higher fertiliser costs, and cane prices have not been lucrative enough, leading some growers to opt for more profitable crops, as Naradhip Anantasuk, manager of the Thai Sugarcane Planters Federation, noted. Global sugar prices have increased due to expectations of reduced production in Thailand, India, and Brazil caused by the drought, according to Naradhip.
However, for farmers to cover their costs, prices would need to reach around 21 to 22 cents per pound, compared to the current prices of approximately 18 to 19 cents. In Khon Kaen province, cane production may fall to 1.8 million tonnes, down from 5.86 million tonnes the previous season, a local official stated. Factors such as inconsistent rainfall, farmers' debt burdens, and disease outbreaks are expected to contribute to the lower cane production, according to Chairat Kittivarapol, an official from a sugarcane growers association in the province.
Written by urgent.news from Bangkok Post Business's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
