Sugar cane commonly referred to as sugarcane or sugar is one of the most frequently used food products in the world. This crop is mainly found in South Asia and Melanesia which has a warm temperature.
Sugarcanes are often cultivated to extract sucrose as a raw food material that is extracted from sugarcane’s which is then purified at specialized mills. They are also fermented to produce ethanol. Estimates indicate that sugarcane is the world’s largest crop in terms of production.
Sugarcane’s are considered as one of the oldest crops cultivated according to the ancient Pali and Sanskrit texts. It was Christopher Columbus himself who first brought sugarcane to the Caribbean, and during the colonial times, sugarcanes were shipped from the Caribbean to England and Europe which was then used for RUM manufacturing. However, today, sugarcane is cultivated in more than 90 countries and here is the list of the top 10 largest sugarcane producing countries in the world.
10. The United States of America
The United States of America is the 10th largest producer of sugarcane in the world. This country has sugarcane production even during the colonial times. Estimates indicate that this country is the 5th largest consumer of sugarcane in the world. The states like Florida, Hawaii, Texas, and Louisiana are some of the major contributors to total sugarcane production in the country. A recent study indicates that 900,000 acres of land in the United States of America is under Sugarcane cultivation.
Total production in thousand metric tons –27,906
9. Philippines
The Philippines is the 9th largest producer of sugarcane in the world today. It is estimated that the sugarcane industry in this country employs more than 1 million people directly and indirectly. The domestic demand for sugarcane in the Philippines is high as the by-products from this crop is used to produce renewable energy. This country is the 2nd largest producer of sugarcane among the Southeast Asian countries. Majority of this countries sugarcane production comes from its 17 provinces and contributes a majority share to its GDP
Total production in thousand metric tons –31,874
8. Indonesia
Indonesia is the 8th largest producer of sugarcane in the world today. Recent studies indicate that Indonesia has reached its full potential in sugarcane cultivation and the production has been declining for the past few years. One of the key reasons for the decline in production was because farmers find many other crops more beneficial than sugarcane production and have been switching to those. Estimates indicate that today only 469 thousand hectares of land is under sugarcane cultivation and it is still decreasing. One of the notable things about this countries sugarcane industry is that the country imports refined sugar from other nations as Indonesia itself lacks an efficient refinery.
Total production in thousand metric tons –33,700
7. Colombia
Colombia is the 7th largest producer of sugarcane in the world today. One of the notable things about the sugarcane industry in this country is that sugarcane harvesting happens throughout the year. Colombia is also estimated to be the 13th biggest producer of sugar and 2nd largest producer of non-centrifugal sugar. Majority of the sugarcane produced in this country comes from the Cauca River Valley. The United States of America, Chile, Haiti, and Peru are some of the largest importers of Colombian sugar.
Total production in thousand metric tons –34,876
6. Mexico
Mexico is the 6th largest producer of sugarcane in the world today. This country employs over 2 million people in the sugarcane industry directly or indirectly. One of the notable things about the sugarcane industry in Mexico is that majority of the sugarcane cultivation is done for yielding bio-energy from its by-products and their derivatives are exported. The United States of America grand’s Mexico a tariff-free sugarcane export to their country. Estimates indicate that 670 thousand hectares of land in Mexico is under sugarcane cultivation which gives them a yield of 60-70 metric tons per hectare.
Total production in thousand metric tons –61,182
5. Pakistan
Pakistan is the 5th largest producer of sugarcane in the world. This country considers sugarcane as a cash crop and employs almost about 9 million people directly and indirectly in this industry. One of the notable things about this countries sugarcane industry is that the yield per hectare cultivated land is comparatively lower than other countries. However, in the recent years, the area under production has been increasing and the government has taken steps to promote sugarcane production.
Total production in thousand metric tons –63,800
4. Thailand
Thailand is the 4th largest producer of sugarcane in the world today. This country has shown a steady increase in their annual production quantity for the past few years. Improved cane varieties, ideal rainfall, efficient use of fertilizers and pesticides are few of the reason for the increase in production. Thailand is one of the major exporters of sugar and molasses products to China, Malaysia, and Japan.
Total production in thousand metric tons –100,096
3. China
China is the 3rd largest and the one of the world’s oldest producer of sugar today. This country has one of the largest domestic demands and the production within the country is not sufficient to meet this demand which makes China one of the largest importers of sugar in the world. The majority of production in this country comes from Guangdong, Yunnan, and Guangxi provinces
Total production in thousand metric tons –125,536
2. India
India is the 2nd largest producer of sugarcane in the world today. This country is also the 3rd largest exporter of sugar in the world. This country is estimated to have 500 mills out of which majority are owned by the cooperative sector and the rest owned by private institutions. Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka are few of the majority of sugarcane producing states in India.
Total production in thousand metric tons –341,200
1. Brazil
Brazil is the world’s largest sugarcane producer with a production quantity comparatively very higher than India. It is estimated that 90% of total production from this country comes from South-Central region. Today, most of the sugarcane produced in Brazil is used for molasses to manufacture ethanol which is used as fuel for automobiles. This country accounts for almost 25% of worlds total sugar production.
Total production in thousand metric tons –740,000
All the data’s mentioned above were collected from Wikipedia and several other websites. The ranking was done only on the basis of production quantity. Hope this article helped you
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