Brown sugar also called as soft sugar is a granulated white sugar combined with pure cane molasses. The common brown sugar is produced from sugar cane or beet. The molasses amount decides the shade of the sugar in light or dark brown. The light brown sugar has around 3.5% of molasses by weight and the dark brown sugar has around 6.5% of molasses and yields deeper color and flavoring. India is one of the world’s largest producer of sugar cane. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), India’s sugarcane production in 2016/2017 was 309.98 MMT (million metric tons), which is expected to increase by 15% to 330 MMT by 2017/2018.

The global brown sugar market is majorly driven by the growing food & beverages industry in the past decades and is anticipated to grow rapidly over the forecast period. Furthermore, the bakery industry is the largest consumer of brown sugar, owing to increasing demand for bakery products. According to Germany Trade and Invest, in 2015, Germany led the European bread market with annual per household consumption of 62.4 kg, which is the highest among all the other nations in Europe and thereby, a high utilization of brown sugar for the manufacture of breads is projected in this region. Moreover, American Crystal Sugar Company uses liquid brown sugar for the manufacture of bakery products. Similarly, Imperial Sugar Company uses brown sugar for the manufacture of sweet rolls.

However, increasing inclination of consumers towards sugar free products and increasing health concerns such as heart diseases, diabetes, obesity, and others are likely to restrain the growth of brown sugar market. Moreover, World Health Organization (WHO) recommends children and adults to reduce their sugar to 10% of total energy intake, which further stands as a restrain in the brown sugar market at a global level.

Global Brown Sugar Market Taxonomy

Global Brown Sugar market is segmented into:

By Product Type

Light Brown

Dark Brown

By Form

Granule

Powder

Liquid

By Application

Bakery

Dairy

Beverages

Others

Bakery Industry is accounted to be the major contributor of the global brown sugar market, owing to increasing demand for bakery products such as breads, biscuits, cakes, and others. According to American Bakers Association, the U.S. bakery industry accounts for US$ 311 billion in the total economic output of the economy or 2.1% of GDP since the last couple of years. Furthermore, high consumption of dairy products is likely to fuel the brown sugar market worldwide.

Global Brown Sugar Market Outlook

Europe was projected to dominate the market of brown sugar in 2016. According to the Environment Protection Agency, the EU sugar production is anticipated to increase up to 20 million tons in 2018 from 16.8 million tons in 2016. North America is accounted to have a burgeoning growth in the brown sugar market owing to the increasing demand from the food & beverages industry. According to The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the export of Canadian processed food & beverage products was about US$ 25.4 million in 2016, which was up by 6.6% as compared to 2015.

Asia Pacific is witnessed to have significant growth in the brown sugar market, owing to growing sugar production and increasing inclination of consumers towards western food and beverage products. According to The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), China sugar production is anticipate to increase by 24% till 2020 to reach 13.6 metric tons. This increase is mainly concentrated in sugar beet and sugarcane yields. In numerous economies such as China, India, Australia, and others brown sugar has become a part of the diet among the people, which in turn is leading to the easy brown sugar incorporation in the local food & beverages industry. According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Thailand has been one of the major sugar exporter with 6 to 7 million tons of sugar exported annually, further contributing to the growth of this market in Asia Pacific region.

Latin America and Africa are projected be the prominent markets of brown sugar over the forecast period. According to FAO, the African sugar output is anticipated to increase by 49% in 2024. Brazil is regarded as the major producer and supplier of sugar in Latin America and is driving growth of the brown sugar market of this region.

In 2017, Tate & Lyle Company launched range of premium golden and brown sugars called ‘Taste for Adventure’. The range consists of five products namely: Organic Dark Soft Brown, Organic Golden Caster, Golden Caster, Dark Soft Brown, and Demerara.

The major players in the global brown sugar market include Imperial Sugar Company, Shree Renuka Sugars Limited, Südzucker AG, Nordzucker Holding AG, American Crystal Sugar Company, Cargill Inc., Taikoo Shing, and Wholesome Sweeteners, Inc.

Brown Sugar Market Key Developments: