Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The government has raised the minimum support price for sugarcane to Rs 620 per quintal for the fiscal year 2025/26.
A cabinet meeting held on Monday made the decision, according to Government Spokesperson and Minister for Communication and Information Technology Jagadish Kharel.
In addition, the government will provide a subsidy of Rs 70 per quintal to farmers, he said.
The minimum support price was Rs 585 per quintal in 2024/25, excluding the Rs 70 per quintal subsidy. Similarly, the minimum support price was Rs 565 per quintal in 2023/24 and Rs 540 per quintal in 2022/23, excluding the subsidy.
Farmer groups have long been demanding that the minimum support price be increased to at least Rs 750 per quintal, arguing that the minimum support price fixed by the government does not cover rising input costs and inflation.
Government data shows that sugarcane production and acreage have been declining in recent years. Low minimum support price, chronic delays in payments by sugar mills have discouraged many farmers from continuing sugarcane cultivation, officials say.
In 2019/20, Nepal produced around 3.4 million tons of sugarcane on 68,565 hectares of land. By 2023/24, the cultivated area had shrunk by 6,340 hectares to 62,225 hectares, while total production fell to 3.1 million metric tons.
