THE current drought induced by the El Nino phenomenon will not have any impact on the availability of sugar on the market, industry players have said.

The Zimbabwe Sugar Association (ZSA), an umbrella body representing cane millers, has assured consumers that there are adequate stocks of sugar from the previous milling season enough to last until March 2025.

In a statement, ZSA chairman V.W Zireva said the prevailing commodity availability would continue without any supply chain disruptions.

"The ZSA wishes to advise stakeholders and the general public that there will be adequate sugar supply for both household and industrial consumption despite the current El Nino induced drought that the country has experienced which has affected the harvest expected from the other agricultural crops," he said.

"As sugar cane is a twelve-month crop grown under irrigation in Zimbabwe, the sugar that is currently on sale was produced from sugar cane crops harvested during the last milling season which ended in December 2023.

"Due to the good rainfall received in the last agriculture season, the major dams that supply water for sugar cane irrigation in the Lowveld have sufficient water to last the next two seasons."

Zireva said with the next sugar cane milling season expected to resume mid-April, the millers are currently undertaking regular, off-crop maintenance of sugar mills in readiness for the new season crop whose harvesting is scheduled to start soon.

"The industry has more than adequate stocks for the local market's domestic and industrial use," reiterated the ZSA chairman.