India’s October-November sugar output rises 43% on higher recovery rates

India’s sugar production in the first two months of the 2025/26 season, which began on October 1, rose 43% from a year earlier, driven by better recovery rates and faster crushing across major producing states, leading industry bodies said on Tuesday. The higher output is expected to allow the world’s second-largest sugar producer to export surplus supplies without risk of domestic shortages, although it could weigh on global prices. SB1!SF1! Mills have produced 4.1 million metric tons of sugar by the end of November, up from last year’s 2.88 million tons, the Indian Sugar & Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA) said in a statement. Production in the western state of Maharashtra, India’s biggest sugar-producing state, more than tripled from last year to 1.7 million tons, while it rose by 9% in northern state of Uttar Pradesh to 1.4 million tons, the ISMA said. However, production in the southern state of Karnataka slipped to 774,000 tons from 812,000 tons a year earlier, as ...