Brazil Sugarcane Industry Association (Unica): 2026/27 Crop Season Update – Second Half of May

The Brazil Sugarcane Industry Association (Unica) recently released its 2026/27 crop season update for the second half of May, highlighting significant shifts in production activities across the South-Central region. During the latter half of May, sugarcane mills in the South-Central region processed a total of 41.55 million tons of sugarcane. This represents a notable 13.08% decrease compared to the 47.8 million tons processed during the same period in the 2025/26 crop season. A total of 250 production units were operational during this fortnight, comprising 231 sugarcane processing units, 10 corn-based ethanol producers, and 9 flexible mills. In contrast, 253 units were operational in the corresponding period of the 2025/26 season, with four units commencing milling operations this fortnight. Regarding raw material quality, the Total Recoverable Sugars (ATR) level for sugarcane in the second half of May reached 125.87 kg of ATR per ton of cane. This marks a slight improvement of 1.09% compared to 124.51 kg per ton recorded in the same period of the 2025/26 season. However, sugar production experienced a substantial decline. The total sugar output for the first fifteen days of May amounted to 2.2 million tons, a significant 25.62% reduction when compared to the 2.96 million tons produced in the equivalent period of the 2025/26 crop season. Conversely, ethanol production remained robust. The South-Central units manufactured a total of 2.13 billion liters of ethanol. This volume included 1.33 billion liters of hydrous ethanol, showing an 8.32% increase, and 796 million liters of anhydrous ethanol, which saw a 1.19% decrease. Notably, corn-based ethanol accounted for 19.41% of the total ethanol produced in the second half of May, underscoring the growing importance of corn as an ethanol feedstock.