Sugar production in Southern Africa

An overview of sugar production and consumption in the countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) is given. Details of amounts of sugar produced, qualities of sugar and markets and destinations are given. Major focus is the South African sugar industry, which is the largest and has the most well developed range of markets and uses for sugar. Domestic consumption is broken down into quantities, qualities and packing/handling systems for different markets. Raw sugar is produced as VHP (Very High Polarization) sugar, and the advantages of producing a single grade of raw sugar are described, both for domestic refiners and for ease in fulfilling exports. Implications of producing VHP for the raw sugar producer and refiner are also covered.