LAHORE: The national sugar production has increased by 0.18 million tonnes or 10.91 per cent compared to the same period last year, driven by higher sugarcane crushing and recovery rates.
According to the latest data, sugar mills across Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have crushed about 20.84 million tonnes of sugarcane till December 31, 2025. This is a big jump of 3.22 million tonnes, or an increase of 18.27 per cent, compared to the 17.62 million tons processed during the same time in the previous 2024-25 season.
As industry crushed more cane, they produced more sugar. Total production reached 1.93 million tonnes, which is 10.91 per cent higher than the 1.74 million tonnes manufactured last year.
However, the most important improvement is the rising ‘recovery rate’ -- the amount of sugar extracted from the cane. This rate rose from about 9.2 per cent to 9.5 per cent, representing an improvement of 3.26 per cent.
As per the breakup of provincial data, Punjab, the heart of the country’s sugar production, has shown strong results. It crushed 15.06 million tonnes of cane compared to last year’s 13.92 million tonnes -- an increase of 1.14 million tonnes or 8.19 per cent. As a result, Punjab’s sugar output rose from 1.21 million tonnes to 1.36 million tonnes, a gain of 12.39 per cent.
More importantly, its recovery rate improved from 9.01 per cent to 9.43 per cent.Sindh’s performance was even more impressive in terms of recovery. The province processed 4.65 million tonnes of cane, almost at last season’s level. Its sugar production jumped to 0.43 million tonnes and its recovery rate climbed from 9.19 per cent to a very high 9.76 per cent.
In KP, Der Ismail Khan Division is doing good. It has a standout recovery rate of 10.17 percent, which suggests that the mills there are working at their best possible level. Lone sugar mill in Mardan however showed recovery rate of just 8.08 per cent.
While the higher recovery rate could be because farmers are growing better types of cane and mills are using better machinery, insiders attribute the improved sugar production data to the active monitoring of sugar mills by government institutions, particularly the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
They believe that close surveillance of sugarcane purchases and inventory management has led to more accurate reporting of key sugarcane crushing statistics, providing a clearer picture of the industry’s performance. This enhanced oversight is seen as a key factor in the recent surge in sugar production, giving a boost to the industry’s overall growth.
Based on the 2025-26 season data, the top-performing individual sugar mills in terms of recovery rate highlight exceptional operational efficiency across various provinces. At the national level, Al-Moiz Sugar Mills (Cane) in DI Khan, KP, leads the industry with the highest recovery rate of 10.75 per cent, setting a formidable benchmark for technical performance.
In Punjab, unlike general perception about efficient mills in South Punjab, the standout mill is Darya Khan Sugar Mill located in Bhakkar, Sargodha Division, which achieved a leading provincial recovery rate of 10.6 per cent, surpassing other strong performers like JDW-I in Rahim Yar Khan (10.33 per cent).
Meanwhile, in Sindh, Mehran Sugar Mills recorded the province’s top recovery rate of 10.48 per cent, demonstrating that high-efficiency operations are present in multiple regions and collectively contribute to the national average improvement.
