The amount of sugarcane processed by the producing units in the Center-South reached 44.62 million tons in the 1st half of August, with a 4.20% retraction on the value calculated in the same fortnight of the 2020/2021 harvest -- 46.58 million tons. The state of São Paulo registered a crushing of 26.04 million tons (-5.05%) and in the other states of the Center-South region the amount processed reached 18.58 million tons (-2.99%).

From the beginning of the 2021/2022 cycle until the first half of August, the crushing accumulated drop of 6.70%. During this period, the amount of sugarcane processed by the mills reached 349.46 million tons, compared to 374.57 million tons in the same period of the last agricultural cycle.

Regarding the number of plants in operation, 258 companies registered production up to August 16, against 265 industrial units on the same date last year. In the last fortnight, a new unit started the harvest.

Agricultural productivity and raw material quality 

In the accumulated of the current agricultural cycle, the retraction in agricultural productivity is 12.8%, with 86.1 tons per hectare registered in the last year, vis-à-vis the 75.1 t/ha observed in the current crop. The first and second frosts in the winter months affected about one million hectares, which represents about 11.9% of the area available for harvest in the 2021/2022 harvest, or 26.9% of the area to be harvested by the end of the current agricultural cycle.

Unica's technical director, Antonio de Padua Rodrigues, explains that "the sharpest drop in productivity in July and August was already expected, as during this period a lot of sugarcane was harvested impacted by frost. The climatic phenomenon required a significant change in the dynamics of the harvest. , further harming the yield of the harvested crop". The executive adds that "in a survey conducted with producers in the Center-South region it was found that the expected supply of sugarcane for the 2021/2022 harvest should be 530 million tons, with a downward bias, in view of the still uncertain impact of the third frost and fire outbreaks that have been observed in recent days".

The quality of the raw material in the 1st half of August, measured from the concentration of total recoverable sugars per ton of sugarcane, registered 150.35 kg of TSR per ton, with a reduction of 1.67% in relation to 152.91 observed in the past cycle. In the accumulated from the beginning of the harvest until August 16, the sugar concentration indicator shows 138.46 kg of TSR per ton of sugarcane, an increase of 0.71% compared to the value observed in the 2020/cycle 2021.

Sugar and Ethanol Production 

In the first half of August, 46.84% of sugarcane was destined for sugar production, compared to 47.69% recorded on the same date in 2020. Sweetener production shrank 7.48% in the last fortnight and reached 2 .99 million tons manufactured, compared to 3.24 million tons verified in the same period of the previous year.

The volume of ethanol produced reached 2.22 billion liters in the first half of August. Priority continues to be given to anhydrous ethanol, whose volume produced was 922 million liters, an increase of 28.17% compared to the same fortnight of the last agricultural cycle. The production of hydrated ethanol registered 1.3 billion liters manufactured (-16.99%). Of the total biofuel produced, 131.96 million liters were made from corn.

In the accumulated since the beginning of the 2021/2022 harvest, sugar production reached 21.32 million tons, against 23.05 million tons verified on the same date of the 2020/2021 cycle. The accumulated production of ethanol, in turn, totaled 16.41 billion liters, being 6.21 billion liters of anhydrous ethanol and 10.20 billion liters of hydrated ethanol. Of the total manufactured, 1.16 billion liters of biofuel were produced from corn.

Ethanol sales 

In the first 15 days of August, the production units in the Center-South sold a total of 1.15 billion liters of ethanol, recording a 5.2% decrease compared to the same period of the 2020/2021 harvest. Of the total sold in July, 52.08 million liters were destined for the foreign market and 1.1 billion liters were sold domestically.

In the domestic market, sales of hydrous ethanol reached 675.97 million liters in the first half of August, with a reduction of 12.29% over the amount calculated in the same period of the last harvest (770.68 million liters). The quantity of anhydrous ethanol sold, in turn, increased by 12.18%, with 426.42 million liters sold in 2021 against 380.12 million liters in 2020.

In accumulated terms from the beginning of the 2021/2022 harvest until August 16, the volume of ethanol sold by companies in the Center-South has accumulated growth of 5.47%, totaling 10.93 billion liters. Of this total, 649.51 million liters were destined for export (a drop of 20.53%) and 10.28 billion for the domestic market (an increase of 8.24%).