The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) for sugarcane for the 2025–26 season at ₹355 per quintal for a basic recovery rate of 10.25 per cent. The decision was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

According to an official statement, the revised FRP is expected to benefit around five crore sugarcane farmers and their families, along with approximately five lakh workers employed in sugar mills and associated sectors.

The revised FRP marks a 4.41 per cent increase over the current season’s rate and is more than double the estimated cost of production, which stands at ₹173 per quintal. For every 0.1 per cent increase in recovery over the base rate, the FRP will increase by ₹3.46 per quintal. Similarly, the price will be reduced by ₹3.46 per quintal for every 0.1 per cent decrease in recovery.

However, in a measure designed to safeguard the interests of farmers in regions with lower sugar recovery, the government has decided that no deduction will be made if the recovery rate falls below 9.5 per cent. In such cases, farmers will receive ₹329.05 per quintal for their produce in the 2025–26 season, which runs from October to September.

The FRP has been fixed based on the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) and after consultations with State governments and other stakeholders.

Official data shows that in the 2023–24 sugar season, nearly 99.92 per cent of the cane dues—amounting to ₹1,11,782 crore—had been cleared as of April 28, 2025. In the ongoing 2024–25 season, about ₹85,094 crore of the ₹97,270 crore dues have been paid so far, accounting for roughly 87 per cent of the total.