The sugar and ethanol producers from Brazil have started cane crushing earlier this season as compared to previous one and are expected to produce more sugar and less ethanol, informed INTL FCStone, the consultancy and broker.
In a note to clients, it said that in the first half of March, 33 mills were operational in the main center-south region which is 22% more than in the last year same period. The crushing at center-south usually starts in April every year.
According to the reports, Brazil will focus on the increase in sugar production as the global prices of oil have fallen.
The Brazilian mills are flexible to produce both sugar as well as ethanol depending on the prices. In the last two seasons, the falling prices of sugar in the international market has helped Brazil to emphasise more on ethanol production. The excess production of sugar kept the prices low, and the mills turned back to their favourite ethanol production.
