Sugarcane crushing in Brazil’s Center-South region is expected to reach the lowest level since 2012, as below-average rainfall affected the development of sugarcane, according to a report published by the International sugar trader Czarnikow. The company projects processed sugarcane at 558 million tons in 2021/22 (April to March), compared to 605 million tons in the previous harvest. “The situation in the sugarcane fields in the Center-South is serious – our field analysts have seen many areas where sugarcane does not seem to have grown”, said Ana Zancaner, Czarnikow analyst. According to her, since October 2020, rainfall in the region is 36% below normal, the biggest drought in a decade. The situation is not even worse because the mills have improved crop care in the past two years, and this improvement will reduce losses, said the analyst. Nevertheless, Czarnikow said the drier weather would at least increase the sugar contents of the sugarcane, helping the production of sugar decline less than the volume of sugarcane.
Sources: Reuters / Nova Cana (*Translated by Ia Niani)