IKAR in Mass and Industry Media

Russia beet sugar output seen at record 3 mln T

Reuters

MOSCOW, July 27 (Reuters) - Russian sugar output from domestic beet will hit a record high of about 3 million tonnes this year as the country devotes more land to the crop, cutting the need for imports by the world's largest raw sugar buyer.

Russia's main industry lobby on Thursday raised its 2006 output forecast for white sugar refined from domestic beet to about 3 million tonnes from 2.65-2.70 million tonnes previously. Last year, output was 2.50 million tonnes.

Earlier, the Russian Sugar Producers' Union said the season's key third beet test, the first to show sugar content, showed a level of 10.3 percent, up from 9.8 percent last year and 9.2 percent in 2004.

Average root weight was 183 grammes, up from 176 grammes a year ago. Density rose to 82,000 beets a hectare from 79,000.

"It's going to be an incredibly promising result," Dmitry Rylko, general director of Russia's Institute for Agricultural Market Studies, said.

"It's quite possible that we will surpass the historical figure of 3 million tonnes," he said.

Russia, the world's largest raw sugar importer, last year produced only 45 percent of the sugar it consumed, but companies have invested in growing more beet and upgrading factories as prices soared earlier this year to their highest in 25 years.

"The Russian beet crop number is very bearish," said a senior analyst with a Western trade house, noting less Russian demand for raw sugar from top grower Brazil would mean greater availability -- and lower prices -- on the world market.

"An extra 500,000 tonnes of production should translate into a one-for-one reduction in raw sugar imports in Jan-March 2007," the analyst said.

GREATER SOWN AREA

Russian large and medium-sized farms had sown 851,100 hectares this year, up from from 811,500 hectares last year, the sugar producers' union said. The total area sown to beet in 2006 was 1.004 million hectares, it said.

The union said in a statement dynamic growth of the sugar beet industry would lead to a gross crop of about 25.9 million tonnes in 2006, guaranteeing procurement volumes of 22 million tonnes and a record volume of sugar refined from beet.

The size of the harvest, however, would depend on the weather. Officials said heavy rains in central Russia in the autumn could damage the crop.

In southern Russia, drought is what farmers fear most.

"We need more rain. More water, please!" said a producer with a plant in southern Russian region of Krasnodar.

The Russian Sugar Producers' Union gave the following data for the third sugar beet test of the season:

Sugar beet tests are conducted every 10 days from July 1 to September, with the next test expected to be on August 1.

Final data on the density of sugar beet plantings will be obtained during the August 21 test.

(Additional reporting by Aleksandras Budrys in MOSCOW and David Brough in LONDON)

31.07.06

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