Favorable Sugar Harvest Conditions Expected for 2012

Favorable Sugar Harvest Conditions Expected for 2012

Since the days of colonization, Mexico’s position as a leading global sugar producer has influenced their cultural history, politics, and economy in a drastic way. Sugar, once referred to as “White Gold” is an imperative staple of Mexican culture and is Mexico’s largest agricultural industry today. Furthermore, Mexico is the sixth most prominent sugar producer in the world. With the increased amount of rainfall in sugar growing areas in Mexico this year, next year is anticipated to see a significant boom in sugar harvests. More rain has begun to appear in the western regions of Mexico as well as along the Gulf of Mexico where many sugar plantations are located. An end to drought conditions in Mexico can prove to be beneficial for not only the sugar industry but also the agricultural economy as a whole due to the crop’s massive influence on Mexican society.

Optimistically, Carlos Blackaller, the president of the National Union of Sugarcane Growers explained, “The rains that are falling in the sugar-cane producing states will benefit the cane that will be harvested next year.” Blackaller predicts that Mexico should produce around 5.1 million tons of sugar in the next season if favorable climatic sugar conditions continue to appear.