Expert: Europe's transition to cheap chemical sugar analogue may lead to ban on imports of organic one

Sergei Kravtsov, the Director General of the National Research Centre for Agriculture at Belarus’ National Academy of Sciences, shed light on some trends in the development of global agricultural industries

“Sugar substitute is now actively being produced with use of chemicals in Europe, and its cost is ten times lower than beetroot sugar, and several times lower than cane sugar,” Mr. Kravtsov said. “Belarus exports more than 50 percent of sugar, and the market may ban imports of organic sugar. Such risks need to be taken into account.”

The expert also spoke of an interesting trend observed in Russia: due to an overabundance of grain, part of the harvest is being processed there into sugar wort. It turns out to be more expensive, but is still profitable. Due to the sanctions, there are not enough hybrids and seeds in Russia to grow domestically the required volumes of raw materials.

Grain prices are a good indicator of the situation on the food market, and Mr. Kravtsov explained, “Last year, the gross grain harvest in the world was 17m tonnes less that in 2022 (when a record was set). Actually, this gap is not large. At present, for example, a tonne of this product costs at least $100 in equivalent in Russia and Belarus, while reaching $700 in some parts of the word and making $400 on average. Cheap grain from Ukraine and even Russia began to enter European markets in autumn, almost leading it agriculture to a collapse.”