The start of the harvest in Ecuador is irregular. Mills such as Valdez Sugar Company started this season on Monday June 26 with a one-month delay due to the storm, while others have not yet started the process that should normally start in the first days of this month.

The situation in the sugar sector is added to the situation in the rice sector, another basic product and part of the basic basket that was also affected by heavy rains that led to the loss of almost 40,000 hectares of crops and which led to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) announced an import process which has not yet been realized and which has received criticism from the rice production sector.

The rains affect the sugar sector and delay the start of the harvest

Meanwhile, of the six sugar factories operating in the country: Valdez, Monterrey Azucarera Lojana, Agroazucar (La Troncal), Del Norte, San Juan and San Carlos, the latter confirmed this week significant losses and delays in production due to delays in harvesting due to the extension of winter , the others did not comment, although the sugar factory sector assures that the industrial sector had to import sugar in order to meet the orders of its customers and avoid shortages on the domestic market.

This was stated by Alberto López, president of the Milagro Canton Sugar Cane Producers Association (Apcam), who confirmed that the 2023 harvest will begin one month late and that “at best, it is expected to start in the first week of July.”

“At the market level, the mills buy sugar abroad, repackage it and sell it in the markets. Logically, it is a bit more expensive, they have a low level of profitability, not to mention losses, and the market is affected because the price of sugar is rising”, assured the head of Apcama. He stated that as soon as the harvest starts, “that speculation” stops and that he expects the market to normalize in terms of prices by the first weeks of July.

This newspaper consulted Laura Zurita, executive president of the National Federation of Sugar Producers of Ecuador (Fenazucar), about the situation in the harvest and production of sugar, who stated that the sector is in meetings and will make a statement this Friday, the 30th.

Valdez and San Carlos were also consulted on the current state of production and market supply, but there was no response as of press time.

Meanwhile, several supermarket chains confirmed on Thursday, June 29, that the supply of sugar from various factories and their brands is not 100% complete.

In some buildings, in the south, center and north of Guayaquil, there were empty places on hangers. Brands such as San Carlos, La Troncal, San Juan, own brands of these supermarkets and Valdez took place on the hangers, but some brands started to become scarce, depending on the establishment. For example, in one supermarket in the south there were several units of San Carlos sugar, while in the Valdez store in the center of the city there was no white sugar on the shelves and only panela and brown sugar of that brand.

Rice is also grown in Colombia and would change import plans, Brazil and Argentina are among Ecuador’s options

Regarding prices, it was confirmed that there were no variations this week. Thus, for example, a kilogram of San Carlos sugar is sold for 0.81 dollars, 2 kg for 2 dollars, and 5 kg for 4.79 dollars; while the 2kg presentation of La Troncala sells for $1.91 and the 2kg for $1.85.

The decrease in supply was also accompanied by an increase in demand, since in several of these facilities individual customers brought several pieces of sugarcane. One, who brought more than 20 1 kg bags in the south, and who preferred a reserve, assured without further details that he had more product to stock.

At the center, on the other hand, another client assures her that she cannot find the sugar she always buys and uses to make sweets to sell. – There isn’t one that I wear all the time, I haven’t been able to find it since Monday – complained the customer, who this time opted for a different brand.

Meanwhile, López revealed that mills, including Valdez, are currently testing the durability of the floor to confirm that it has lost moisture in order to operate.

“This is due to the weight of the trucks, they are on average 20 tons that have to be supported. Trucks enter the troughs to collect cane from the harvesters,” explained López, who also revealed that tracked harvesters and trailers that have high-flotation tires are being tested to work on wet floors.