Expert Perspective on WASDE Report

In a letter issued today about the USDA’s September 2009 WASDE (World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates) report, noted sugar industry analyst Frank Jenkins of The Jenkins Sugar Group writes that sugar production will decrease by an estimated 250,000 tons, while imports are expected to rise by an estimated 330,000 tons.

Imperial Sugar Company’s senior vice president of Commodities Management, Patrick Henneberry, agrees with Jenkins, but also notes that Imperial believes that the USDA has lowered their sugar beet crop estimations, but not the probability of higher demand. “The sugar beet crop is still overestimated,” he says. “With demand expected to be at nearly 10.7 million tons, as much as another one million tons of sugar may need to be imported. This means that the market will continue to be sensitive to the level of sugar imports, and in particular to the timing of imports, allowed by the USDA.”