9 November 20261 min read

Sugar output up 57% this year as shop prices fall

Kenya's mills made 690,521 tonnes of sugar from January to September 2026, 56.7% more than a year earlier, and the average retail price fell to Sh155 a kilo, the Kenya Sugar Board says.

Rows of young sugarcane in a field in Kuria East, Kenya — Photo: Elite Jac, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

690,521 t

of sugar made from January to September 2026, against 440,652 tonnes a year earlier

Kenya Sugar Board chief executive Jude Chesire told the International Sugar Organization's council in London that mills produced 690,521 tonnes of sugar from January to September 2026, against 440,652 tonnes in the same months of 2025, a rise of 56.7%. They crushed 7.76 million tonnes of cane, up from 4.97 million.

Imports fell 31%, to 251,690 tonnes from 364,486. Imports of refined white sugar, the kind many factories use, still rose, to 158,006 tonnes from 137,756. Stocks at the end of September stood at 70,773 tonnes, against 14,033 a year earlier, and molasses output rose 62% to 307,617 tonnes.

The average retail price was Sh155 a kilo in September, down from Sh171 a year earlier. The KNBS price survey shows the same direction: a kilo averaged Sh163.84 in October, 11.1% less than a year before.

The Board expects about 900,000 tonnes for the full year, against national demand of about one million tonnes.

Sugar, January to Septemberthousand tonnes

20252026

Made in Kenya+249.80: 440.70
690.50
Imported−112.80: 364.50
251.70
Stocks at end of September+56.80: 14.00
70.80

Kenya Sugar Board figures, rounded to the nearest hundred tonnes.

Why it matters

Sugar is a main input for bakers, soft drink makers and confectioners, and molasses for distillers and animal feed makers.
Mill sugar is in much better supply than a year ago, while refined sugar for industry still comes mostly from imports.
Full-year output is still expected to fall short of national demand.

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