Chinese sugar refineries plan to lobby Beijing to increase off-quota sugar imports next year, according to several sources, after the government took measures to reduce shipments this year.
Major sugar refiners in China proposed at an industry conference that the government should resume import permits at 1.9 million tonnes for 2018, to ease tight supplies for the raw material, according to two of the sources.
“We hope to import more. Business will be easier if we can get more quotas. Many plants can’t operate at a normal rate due to shortages of raw materials,” said a sugar refinery manager who attended the meeting.
The proposal for more import permits has to be sent to Beijing for review and final approval, although details on the timing were not clear.