Top 10 Global Sugarcane Production Countries

Brazil outperforms its next six closest competitors! Here is a list of countries that produce sugarcane.

Sugarcane is a key economic crop across the world, producing sugar, ethanol, and jaggery (a semi-refined sugar derivative popular in the Indian subcontinent). Its byproducts are also used as animal feed in a number of nations. Sugarcane is a long, perennial grass with jointed, fibrous stalks that reaches 3 to 4 meters tall. Though it was first cultivated on the Indian subcontinent circa 327 BC, it rapidly spread to the rest of the world via trade routes through the Middle East.It later arrived in the New World and thrived as an industry. Sugarcane is still used in a number of religious ceremonies in India. Most warm-weather countries currently cultivate sugarcane.

10. United States (27,900 TMT)

9. Phillipines (31,900 TMT)

In the Philippines, there is a need to create sustainable energy from sugar waste due to rising imported oil prices. To meet these criteria, as well as the United States’ export quota, the country largely produces sugarcane. Sugarcane employs around 0.7 million people in the Philippines. In conclusion, the cash crop is vital to the country’s economy.

8. Indonesia (33,700 TMT)

Sugarcane yield in the country has never reached its full potential due to inadequate crop management and a lack of competition. There is also a high local demand for sugar, yet Indonesia still lacks processing infrastructure. Despite these hurdles, the country has emerged as one of the world’s top 10 sugarcane producers. It imports refined sugar from other countries due to a lack of refineries that would allow direct use of its own produced sugar. Because most Indonesian sugar cane must be exported to be processed and then imported back to be eaten, there is an urgent need to modernize and increase the efficiency of existing sugar mills. This results in severe efficiency losses.

7. Colombia (34,900 TMT)

Columbia harvests sugarcane all year, with the Cauca River Valley housing the majority of the crop. Sugarcane mills and ethanol factories are concentrated in the same area. Colombia produces around 34,900 thousand metric tons of sugarcane each year, making it one of the world’s largest sugar producers. In recent years, sugar consumption in the United States has increased by 1%. Colombia’s sugarcane yield will increase in the coming years to satisfy expanding local sugar demand as well as that of the country’s long-established export markets. Columbian sugar is mostly imported by Chile, Peru, Haiti, and the United States of America.

6. Mexico (61,200 TMT)

Mexico, which is located in North America, has evolved as a large producer of sugarcane throughout the years, with over two million people directly or indirectly involved in sugarcane production. Mexicans grow the commercial crop largely for the purpose of producing sustainable bio-energy from sugarcane byproducts at home and exporting sugarcane derivatives. Sugar exports from the nation to the neighboring United States of America are duty-free.

5. Pakistan (63,800 TMT)

Sugarcane is a major cash crop in Pakistan and employs more than 9 million Pakistanis. Sugarcane naturally contributes greatly to Pakistan’s export economy. Despite the fact that existing mills are efficient in terms of capacity, Pakistan’s government has already made various efforts to increase the country’s overall production. Because of these initiatives, overall sugarcane output has grown, and the country now produces 63,800 thousand metric tons of the crop each year. As a result, Pakistan is considered as one of the world’s top five sugarcane farmers. Sugar is sold to neighboring countries including Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and other Central Asian states.

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4. Thailand (100,100 TMT)

Thailand’s yearly sugarcane production has grown steadily in recent years. The rise of Thailand’s sugarcane yield has been greatly aided by ideal rainfall distribution, better cane types, and higher fertilizer use. Furthermore, increased sugarcane producing area has resulted from continuous commercial crop returns. Because of variables such as relatively low sugar demand in Thai domestic markets and very low transportation costs to other major Asian nations, its overall refined sugar exports have increased significantly. Thailand sells sugar to a number of countries, including China, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, and Japan. It also exports a lot of molasses derived from sugarcane syrups and solids. This is the fourth largest producer of sugarcane in the world.

3. China (125,500 TMT)

Sugarcane cultivated in China’s south and southwest is believed to account for 80% of total sugar output. In reality, sugarcane farming has a long history in the country. Chinese people were already familiar with sugarcane growing in the 4th century BC, according to the earliest sources. However, they did not become proficient in sugar refining procedures until much later, about 645 AD. Despite being one of the leading producers, China imports sugar from other countries to meet its high domestic demand. Among the most prominent are Brazil, Thailand, Australia, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Cuba. Currently, the nation is Myanmar’s main market for sugar. In order to fulfill the expanding fuel demand of its enormous population, the government has also made ethanol manufacturing from sugarcane a full-fledged enterprise.

2. India (341,200 TMT)

In India, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Bihar produce the most sugarcane. An annual production of 341,400 TMT was anticipated in 2015. Nonetheless, it comes as no surprise that India is one of the world’s top sugar exporters. Sugarcane is farmed in India for the production of crystal sugar, jaggery (Gur), and a range of alcoholic beverages. It is estimated that more than 6 million Indians work in the country’s sugarcane industry. The country exports sugar to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Somalia, Sudan, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates. India’s sugar exports to Iran, on the other hand, have been declining in recent years. This is the world’s second largest producer of sugarcane.

1. Brazil (739,300 TMT)

Brazil is the world’s greatest sugarcane grower, producing 739,300 thousand metric tons each year. The South-Central region of Brazil accounts for more than 90% of total national output. Sugar is the main product generated from sugarcane farmed in this country. However, as ethanol is used as a fuel to power automobiles, which are becoming more popular among Brazilians, the production of ethanol from residual molasses is becoming more frequent. At the World Trade Organization (WTO), the country has challenged the Thai government’s sugar subsidies to sugarcane producers. These subsidies are expected to have a global influence on sugar prices and Brazil’s market dominance of sugarcane.