Almost 40% of sugarcane and ethanol-producing plants in south-central Brazil, a region that supplies much of the global sweetener trade, are expected to close sugarcane crushing in October, more than a month earlier than normal, the Union of Sugar cane industry (Unica). The mills have been able to maintain an accelerated grinding rate during most of the season started in April due to drier than normal climate in south-central Brazil. However less rainfall also means a smaller volume of cane, another reason for the early start of the season. In a normal year, the mills would extend the milling started in late March until mid-December. A survey by Unica with associated mills showed that 38% of them are due to close operations next month. Only 12% believe they will enter in December with cane still to be processed. Last year, 36% of the mills went into December with the sugarcane milling in progress. The situation will result in a much greater off-season, when the mills only work with the sale of sugar and ethanol from stocks. The association said on Tuesday that mills produced 2.14 million tons of sugar in the first half of September, down from 2.37 million tons in the previous fortnight. Cane milling totaled 38.51 million tons in the period, against 43.30 million tons in the second half of August. Unica said sugarcane yields continued to fall at the latter stage of the harvest due to the drought. The yield in the first half of September was on average 70.7 tons of sugarcane per hectare, or 9.16% below that seen in the same period of last year.
Src.: Nova Cana