The Hindu Business Line :
Hit by a steep fall in sugar output in India and Brazil, the International Sugar Organisation (ISO) has forecast the global production to fall 7.4 million tonnes to 161.6 million tonnes in 2008-09.
“The world sugar deficit will be of 3.90 million tonnes in 2008-09 against a surplus of 7.25 million tonnes in 2007-08,” ISO said.
A significant production shortfall in India and a continuing contraction of production in the European Union (EU) are two major supply features of 2008-09, it added.
According to the Maharashtra State Co-operative Sugar Factories Federation Ltd, sugar production in 2008-09 is estimated to fall 20 per cent to 21.7 million tonnes (mt) against 27.3 mt. It may slip further by 14 per cent to 18.7 mt in 2009-10 sugar season, the Federation said. “Apart from less rain, delay in payments from the sugar producers has discouraged farmers to take up sugarcane cultivation. They have shifted to other remunerative crops and thus a decline in sugar output,” said an analyst.
In Maharashtra, the output is estimated to drop 38 per cent to 5.7 mt (9.2 mt), Uttar Pradesh 14 per cent to 6.5 mt (7.6 lt), Karnataka 2.5 mt (2.8 mt), Tamil Nadu 2 mt (2.5 mt) and Andhra Pradesh 1 mt (1.3 mt).
Sugar output in Brazil’s Centre South, the world’s biggest-producing region, slumped 20 per cent in the first half of August after rains slowed harvesting and mills turned more cane into ethanol.
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“I have tried a bit of Indian food and it’s not very different from Mexican food. I love the food here,” she giggles. “I’m obsessive about exercising, because I think about eating food all the time! So before coming to India, I exercised a lot so that I could be a glutton here. I’m a big foodie.”
This is Lorena’s first visit to India, but, she says, she plans to “see all the places India is famous for, eat the food and yes, watch some movies.” That’s because she hasn’t seen any so far. “There, in Mexico or Miami, not a lot of Bollywood or Indian entertainment stuff is available. The same happens with Mexican stars. A lot of people in India, I’m sure, don’t know the most famous Mexican superstars,” she explains.
It was the “magic of TV” that made Lorena want to be an actress. “Since I was little, I’d sit in front of the TV and imitate the actresses. In Mexico, TV is more popular than the movies. I’ve done some movies too, but I enjoy TV. The world of movies is very different.”
Would she like to do a Bollywood film? “Sure! I’d love to work in a Bollywood movie, but the script has to be really strong. And I don’t mind singing and dancing here, because I’ve done all that in Mexico,” she says brightly.
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