No Further Sugar Diversion for Ethanol: Food Secretary

New Delhi, Feb 22 (PTI) There is no proposal to allow further diversion of sugar for making ethanol in the current 2023-24 supply year, Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said on Thursday.

In December last year, the government capped diversion of sugar at 17 lakh tonne for the current 2023-24 supply year (November-October).

It allowed use of both cane juice and B-heavy molasses within the overall cap for ethanol making.

"There is no proposal to allow further diversion of sugar for ethanol production," Chopra said in a media briefing.

The diversion of sugar for ethanol was capped as the government expects sugar production to decline to 32.3-33 million tonnes in the ongoing 2023-24 season (October-September) as against 37.3 million tonnes in the previous season.

The government is promoting the use of maize as an alternative to sugar to increase ethanol production and ensure sufficient supply of the sweetener in the market.

Cooperatives Nafed and NCCF have been allowed to sell maize at a base price at Rs 2,291 per quintal to ethanol makers this year, he added.