Executive Summary
For the 2013/14 MY [1] (May 2013 to April 2014), post forecasts a five percent increase in sugar cane production from the 2012/13 MY, to 18.1 MMT. Most of the sugar producing areas received good rains during the early parts of 2013, which will contribute to an increase in sugar cane
production. In addition, heavy rains during the end of 2012, hampered harvesting of some sugar cane fields and as a result those fields will be carried over to the 2013/14 MY for harvesting. After enduring two of the worst drought-affected production seasons in the past 20 years, sugar cane
production increased by three percent in the 2012/13 MY, to 17.3 MMT. Better climatic growing conditions were the main reason for the increase in production. However, the sugar industry was unable to benefit fully from the better climatic conditions as a national transport strike in October
2012, and heavy rains at the end of 2012, hampered harvesting.
For the 2013/14 season, sugar production is estimated at 2.1 MMT (2.2 MMTRV), almost eight percent more than the 2.0 MMT (2.0 MMTRV) produced in the 2012/13 MY, on a higher sugar cane crop. In the 2011/12 season, South Africa produced its lowest sugar crop the past 15 years at 1.8 MMT (1.9 MMTRV), due to a drought-affected production season.
In the 2013/14 MY, South Africa’s sugar exports could increase by 25 percent to reach 500,000 MTRV, due to an increase in sugar production. Post estimates that sugar exports in the 2012/13 MY could be around 400,000 MTRV, an increase of 47 percent from the 2011/12 MY’s sugar exports of
271,330 MTRV.
