The All India Sugarcane Farmers Federation (AISFF), affiliated to the All India Kisan Sabha, has demanded major changes in the proposed Draft Sugarcane Control Order 2026, urging the Union government to make the law more favourable to sugarcane farmers and agricultural workers.
In a memorandum submitted to Union Food and Public Distribution Minister Prahlad Joshi, the AISFF criticised the proposed fixation of Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) based on a 10.25% sugar recovery rate, calling it arbitrary and anti-farmer. The federation demanded that FRP should instead be calculated on a 9.5% recovery rate, reflecting the average recovery levels in several sugarcane-producing states.
The organisation also reiterated its long-standing demand that sugarcane prices should be fixed according to the Swaminathan Formula of C2+50%, which recommends providing farmers at least 50% profit over comprehensive production costs.
According to the AISFF, the draft order has focused heavily on promoting ethanol production while ignoring the interests of crores of sugarcane growers and agricultural workers who form the backbone of the sector. The federation argued that with the government’s strong push for ethanol blending, sugar mills are earning significant additional revenue from by-products such as ethanol, electricity generation, and fertilisers.
The federation demanded that 50% of the surplus generated from the sale of such by-products should be shared with sugarcane farmers and workers. It said farmers are currently excluded from the benefits of the expanding ethanol economy despite being the primary producers of sugarcane.
The memorandum highlighted the scale of the sugar sector, noting that sugarcane cultivation in the 2025-26 season is estimated at 57.35 lakh hectares. It also pointed out that around 67.7 lakh agricultural labourers are engaged in sugarcane cultivation, harvesting, and transportation activities across the country.
The AISFF stated that poor and small farmers constitute the overwhelming majority among the 55.7 lakh registered sugarcane growers. More than half of the farmers own less than one hectare of land and remain highly vulnerable to delayed payments by sugar mills.
Expressing concern over mounting cane payment arrears, the federation said the existing 14-day payment rule remains ineffective despite technological advancements and digitalisation. It demanded strict accountability for delayed payments and mandatory payment of interest on arrears.
The federation also opposed the proposal to increase the minimum distance between two sugar mills from 15 km to 25 km, arguing that it would create monopolies and weaken farmers’ bargaining power.
On the cooperative sector, the AISFF stressed the need to modernise, democratise, and strengthen cooperative and public sector sugar mills. It demanded regular elections to cooperative sugar factory boards and greater fiscal and administrative autonomy for sugarcane growers’ cooperatives.