Russian production of refined sugar for the year to date has increased to 2.32 million metric tons, figures released today (12/12) by Soyurossakhar, the Russian sugar producers’ association, reveal. This compares favourably with the 2.114m tons produced throughout 2004.
Increased production levels can be viewed as the result of a higher sugar content in the beet harvest, meaning that more sugar is being produced using fewer beets. Figures published in a report that appeared on the Dow Jones newswire state that the sugar content of the 2005 beet harvest was an average of 13.9% while in last year it was only 12.33%.
Another factor contributing to higher production levels is an increase in the number of refineries processing the beet harvest, which have risen from 21 in 2004 to 26 in 2005, the report said.