With locally produced sugar out of stock, shops nationwide are rushing to stock imported brands to meet demand. Guyanese are now left with no choice but to become familiar with foreign sugar.
In 2019, under the APNU+AFC Coalition government, no one could have imagined that Guyana’s sugar industry could have collapsed to the point where Guyanese must depend on imports to meet their needs. But, after being in office for just over two years, the Peoples’ Progressive Party has overseen a total collapse of an industry struggling since its last tenure in office.
Sugar production has declined by 61%, from 33,531 tons in the first crop of 2019 to just 13,076 tons in the first crop of 2022. With Guyana’s local market consuming between 20,000-30,000 tons per year on average, this sharp decline leaves GUYSUCO struggling to meet local demand.
The government had announced plans to increase packaging at the Uitvlugt Estate to help meet local demand, but with Uitvlugt workers currently on strike, it is highly unlikely that the plan will be successful.
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