Agrana to import $50m of sugar

Agrana Romania, the leader on the Romanian sugar market, plans to buy 50 million dollars (38 million euros) of raw sugar from international markets owing to insufficient yields of domestic sugar beet. “We have allocated a visibly higher amount than last year because the raw sugar price increased on international markets since 2003. At the same time we want to focus on domestic sugar beet production, at least up to the sugar quota we are to be allocated,” said Emilian Dobrescu, general representative of Agrana Romania, which owns three sugar factories in Romania. The imported sugar will cover about 80-90% of Agrana Romania”s sugar sales, with the remaining amount coming from domestic sugar beet processing. The price per tonne of raw sugar has reached 240 dollars on international markets, up from an average 200 dollars per tonne last year. ZF