The crushing of (season-2023-24) Darshana Carew and Company Sugar Mills in Chuadanga has been closed on February 5 for want of sugarcane, but the closing date was fixed on February 8. The authorities said that the crushing target was not achieved, sources added.
It is learnt from the source of Carew and Company Sugar Mills that the Chairman of Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industry Corporation Sheikh Soebul Alam inaugurated the crushing season by dropping sugarcane in the crushing cannel of the Mill. The crushing period was fixed for 55 days. The sugar recovery rate was assumed to be 5.0 per cent. But the crushing day of the season ended on February 5 at 5 am with 52 working days.
During this time, 56,005 metric tons of sugarcane has been crushed and 2,467 metric tons of sugar have been produced at the extraction rate of 4.67 percent.
Mohammad Mosharaf Hossain, Managing Director of Darshana Carew and Company Sugar Mills, said that as per the instructions of the headquarters, the farmers are being persuaded in sugarcane cultivation. This year, although the sugar factory may not make a profit, it is expected that the losses will come down to a large extent.
Darshana Carew & Company Sugar Mills is the largest sugar mill in the country that was established in 1938. A large industrial complex consisting of sugar factories, distilleries, bio-fertilizer factories and pharmaceutical factories. The sugar factory has been continuously incurring losses during the last few years.
However, the government has taken a plan to modernizing the sugar mill by adding new equipment at a cost of about Tk 22,00,00,000. The capacity of sugarcane crushing and sugar production will increase in the coming days.