Indian Farmers May Increase Sugar Cane Area on Prices

By Pratik Parija

Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Farmers in India, the world’s second- biggest sugar producer, may increase the area planted with sugar cane because of higher prices, helping the South Asian nation to lower its dependence on imports.

“Farmers are getting paid better prices,” farm secretary T. Nanda Kumar told reporters in New Delhi today. “Obviously there will be a little more interest in sugar cane.”

A bigger crop may help the world’s largest consumer overcome a shortfall in production of the sweetener. Raw sugar has gained 18 percent since January in New York on forecasts the country may become a net importer for the first time since 2006.

Output in the year ending September may total 16.5 million tons from 26.4 million last year, Farm Minister Sharad Pawar has said. That may lead to imports of 2 million tons in the 12-month period, Pawar said this week.

The nation’s sugar cane output may drop 17 percent to 290.5 million tons in the year to June as farmers shift to grains, the farm ministry said Feb. 12.

Separately, India’s wheat production, second only to that of China, may be 77.8 million tons, Kumar said, reiterating a farm ministry forecast early this month. That compares with a record 78.6 million tons last year.

Condition of the standing crop is good because of favorable night temperatures, Kumar said.

Wheat, sowed in October, is harvested in March and April.

To contact the reporter on this story: Pratik Parija in New Delhi at pparija@bloomberg.net.