Thailand’s Sugar Output to Peak

Sugar output in Thailand, the second-biggest exporter, may reach a record as the highest price in 28 years encourage millers to expand production, according to the Office of the Cane and Sugar Board.

According to Bloomberg, production may climb to 8 million metric tons in the crop year starting Nov. 1, 2010, said Prasert Tapaneeyangkul, the secretary-general, in an interview in Bangkok. That compares with 7.64 million tons forecast for the 2009-10 season and 7.19 million tons this year, he said.

Sugar has more than doubled this year as production lagged behind demand in India and lower-than-expected output in Brazil, the top producer, worsened a global deficit. The surge in prices has encouraged farmers in Thailand to boost plantings, and the nation may harvest a record 75 million tons of cane in the 2010- 11 season, Prasert said.

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