In 2013, Südzucker Moldova produced 99,500 tonnes of sugar, the largest amount since the company's foundation in 2001, according to a press release from the company. This amount was extracted from 700,000 tonnes of sugar beet, IPN reports.
There are three competitors on the Moldovan sugar market: Magt Vest (with factories in Glodeni and Donduseni, accounting for 32% of the production capacity in the country), Moldova-Zahar (owning the Cupcini factory –29% of the production capacity) and Südzucker Moldova (with factories in Drochia and Falesti – 39% of the capacity).
According to Südzucker Moldova, the average yield of sugar beet was above 40 tonnes per hectare. The company had one of the longest processing periods in the history of Moldovan sugar industry – 100 days.
Thanks to high productivity and prices higher compared to regional ones (over 700 lei per tonne), sugar beet became the most profitable field crop in Moldova. The gross income of farms per ehectare of sugar beet was about 7000-8000 lei, reports the company. Südzucker Moldova also notes that the market competitiveness of Moldovan sugar improved as a result of the reduction of the VAT rate for this product to 8%.
The average price of sugar on the Moldovan market is $790 per tonne, considerably lower than regional prices (Ukraine and Romania)- $830-840/tonne.
