Naduhas finally come up with a policy that should sweeten the deal for farmers and sugar factory owners. The primary goal of the Tamil Nadu Ethanol Blending Policy 2023 is to attract investments worth 5,000 crore for molasses/grain-based ethanol production and make the state self-sufficient in meeting the estimated annual requirement of 130 crore litres.
The byproducts of this effort will be better income for farmers as demand for feedstock grows and a revival of the states sugar Industry as utilization of existing mills increases.
Worldwide, the future of the sugar industry lies in ethanol. In Brazil, the worlds largest sugar producer, only 40-45% of its sugarcane goes into sugar production. Half the crop is directly used for ethanol production. After almost 20 years of talks and 5-6 years of real push, India has achieved 10% ethanol blend and is set to take it up to 20% by 2025.