The country’s nine state-owned sugar mills are beginning their crushing seasons in phases, with the government setting 18 December as the deadline for all nine to start operations. The loss-making industry continues to struggle with low sugar recovery, outdated machinery and inadequate sugarcane supplies.
North Bengal Sugar Mills in Gopalpur, Natore, has already started crushing and has produced around 400 tonnes, said Md Shamsuzzaman Suruz, chairman of the Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation (BSFIC).
Natore Sugar Mills and Rajshahi Sugar Mills are scheduled to begin on 13 November. According to a Ministry of Industries notification published in the Bangladesh Gazette on 2 November, Zeal Bangla Sugar Mills in Dewanganj, Jamalpur, will start on 27 November, followed by Thakurgaon Sugar Mills on 4 December. The remaining four mills will begin on 18 December: Joypurhat Sugar Mills, Carew & Co (Bangladesh) in Darshana, Chuadanga, Mobarakganj Sugar Mills in Naldanga, Jhenaidah, and Faridpur Sugar Mills in Madhukhali. The notification replaces a schedule set in August 1994 and takes effect immediately.
Suruz said BSFIC was monitoring crushing and sugar production daily. Recovery at the start of the season is around 5 percent, but the corporation hopes to raise it to 6 percent or more as crushing progresses. He said special initiatives were being taken to improve recovery. Officials have been deployed to ensure mills receive clean, good-quality sugarcane, and improved varieties are being tested in Madhukhali and Natore.
BSFIC reported an overall loss of Tk554.36 crore in FY2024-25, up from Tk508.24 crore a year earlier, according to its annual report. The losses cover the corporation’s establishments, not just the nine operating mills. Only Carew & Co among the nine posted a profit, earning Tk97.08 crore.
Producing one kilogramme of sugar cost Tk260.14 including interest and Tk181.73 excluding interest, while the government’s fixed selling price was Tk125.
In FY2024-25 the nine mills crushed 839,211 tonnes of sugarcane and produced 46,187 tonnes of sugar, against annual domestic demand of around 20 lakh tonnes. The average recovery rate rose to 5.50 percent from 5.07 percent a year earlier.
BSFIC attributed the losses to inadequate sugarcane supplies relative to crushing capacity and declining efficiency caused by ageing factories and machinery. Six of its 15 mills have remained closed since FY2020-21.
