New Delhi, Sep 24, 2025 – The National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) has asked the central government to raise the minimum selling price (MSP) of sugar by 25%, from ₹3,100 to ₹3,900 per quintal.
The request has been sent to the Ministry of Food and Consumer Affairs, just ahead of the new sugar season starting on October 1. The federation says the increase is necessary to support sugar mills and ensure the long-term health of the sugar industry.
According to NFCSF Managing Director Prakash Naiknavare, the proposed price hike won’t fuel inflation, as current market prices are already close to ₹3,900 per quintal. He also said this change would bring more financial stability to cooperative sugar mills.
The federation pointed out that during the current sugar season, sugar has been selling at ₹3,860–₹3,940 per quintal at factory level, much higher than the current MSP of ₹3,100. They argue that updating the MSP to reflect actual production costs would provide much-needed price support and won’t affect consumer prices.
For the upcoming year (2025–26), India is expected to produce about 35 million tonnes of sugar, thanks to good monsoon conditions in key sugar-producing states like Maharashtra and Karnataka.
However, around 4.5 million tonnes will be used for ethanol production and 2 million tonnes for exports. This brings the effective sugar availability to 31 million tonnes—slightly less than last year’s 34 million tonnes. Domestic consumption is expected to be around 26.2 million tonnes.
The drop in production is mainly due to unexpected rainfall and pest issues in major sugar-growing regions.
