Cosun: beet sugar yield will be disappointing this year

Cosun Beet Company expects a moderate yield of beet sugar for the 2024 harvest. Due to the heavy rainfall, not all sugar beets have yet been sown. The crop that has been sown also suffers from water damage in many places. Cosun expects that the sugar yield will not be higher than last year, despite a slightly increased sugar beet area this year. Partly because of this, less sugar will be available on the market in 2025, the cooperative sugar group warns.

In a statement, Cosun Beet Company indicated that not all sugar beets had yet been sown on Wednesday, June 12. Just under 98% of the target area was in the ground on that date. "We expect that some of these will no longer be sown. Moreover, the extremely wet spring also has an effect on the growth and plant health of the sown plants. Especially in plots that are partly flooded," Cosun reports in the statement.

The company points out that since January 1, 2024, 457 millimeters of rain has fallen. That is more than 150 millimeters more than average. Moreover, it has extremely wet. "The current expectation is that the upcoming harvest of 2024/2025 will not yield more sugar than the previous harvest of 2023/2024. This despite the slightly increased acreage compared to last year," said Cosun.

Less available on the market
The company, with its head office in Dinteloord, emphasizes that not only the Netherlands, but also several countries in Northwestern Europe have been affected by the heavy rainfall. In combination with other factors, according to Cosun, this will have consequences for the availability of sugar on the European market in 2025. Apart from the lower than expected sugar yield from this year's harvest due to late sowing and water damage, the EU is also exporting more sugar to countries outside the European continent. The maximum quota for imports from Ukraine has also been reduced in 2024 (263.000 tons compared to more than 400.000 tons last year).

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