OREANDA-NEWS  On 18 September was announced, that in the beginning of September ASTARTA started sugar production campaign at Veselopodilyanski, Yareskivski and Zhdanivski sugar plants. In the near future, other three sugar plants controlled by the Holding would set in the sugar production process.

Despite of the decreasing number of working sugar plants in current season in Ukraine, ASTARTA is planning to start up all its 6 sugar plants. First of all it became possible through increase of area under sugar beet by 30% to 30,000 hectares. Such an expansion, as well as an increase in beet yields up to 47 tons per hectare in average will provide the ASTARTA's sugar plants with about 80% of own row material. In general, ASTARTA is planning to harvest 1.4 mln. tons of sugar beet (856 thousand tons in 2007). Along with it, existing contracts with  partner farmers on purchase of a sugar beet give the grounds to estimate that the Holding will produce more than 220 thousand tons of sugar in the current production season.

Before the start of sugar production campaign, the Group has continued the modernization of its sugar production facilities with use of EBRD financing and own funds resulting in the decrease of energy consumption per product unit and increase of sugar quality.