. /.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/ACC/LTU/26
4 September 1998
(98-3387)
Working Party on the
Accession of LithuaniaOriginal:  English
ACCESSION OF LITHUANIA
Communication from Lithuania
The Permanent Mission of Lithuania has submitted the following information concerning the
sugar industry in Lithuania, with the request that it be circulated to members of the Working Party.
_______________
The Sugar Industry in Lithuania:  Situation and Perspectives
The sugar industry in Lithuania is an old traditional activity and an important sector of its
agriculture.  The first sugar refinery with capacity of only 800 tons of beet per day started itsoperations in 1932.  Later in 1935, the second one was constructed, the third in 1940 and the fourth in
1975.  Lithuanian sugar refineries have been processing cane raw sugar since 1954.  Most of it under
agreements with Cuba concluded by the former Soviet Union.  The white sugar produced from cane
raw sugar was supplied to Moscow, Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) and Estonia.  Since
independence, the policy is to let sugar be produced for the market from local material - sugar beet.
The Capacity of the Refineries and Sugar Production
Year Total capacity
(tons per year)Processed
sugar beet
during
campaign
(thou. t)Length of
campaign
(days)Sugar
production
from beet
(thou. t)Sugar production from cane
(thou. t)
1993 6,600 733 95 86.2 40.7
1994 7,200 410 80 47.0 -
1995 8,200 600 73 75.9 29.0
1996 8,800  645 73 89.1 47.1
1997 10,100 940 89 118.4 -
As can be seen from table, the total capacity of sugar refineries has grown and reached
10,100 tons in 1997.  The production of cane raw sugar shows strong fluctuations or a rather low level
while that of beet sugar is rising.
In 1993-1997, factories produced approximat ely 118.6 tons of sugar;  78.8 tons or
66.4 per cent sugar were made from local material - sugar beet.  The present technical status of sugar
factories does not ensure rational processing of sugar beets, so they need modernization.WT/ACC/LTU/26
Page 2
On 23 June 1998, “Danisco Sugar” concluded a conditional agreement for the acquisition of
private shareholdings in Lithuania’s four sugar factories.  On 30 June 1998, “Danisco Sugar A/S”
bought the shares belonging to the State in the Marijampolë (24.89 per cent) and Pavenèiai
(21.3 per cent) sugar factories.
The investment by this world-wide-known company in Lithuania’s sugar industry will help
raise productivity in the production of sugar beet and modernisation of the sugar refineries, also in the
processing into sugar.  In 1997, the beet acreage in Lithuania was 35.2 thousand hectares; the yield
averaged 29.1 tons of beet per hectare; in Denmark it was 49.9 tons per hectare.
__________