Sugar

AB Sugar is a leading producer of sugar and sugar-derived co-products in Africa, the UK, Spain and north China.

32,000

Employees

£1,650m

Revenue

We operate 27 plants in 10 countries and have 32,000 employees. We have the capacity to produce some 4.5 million tonnes of sugar annually. Our products are sold into industry sectors including food and drink, pharmaceutical, industrial, agricultural and horticultural, power and energy.

In Europe, Azucarera is the largest producer in Iberia and British Sugar is the sole processor of the UK beet sugar crop. Illovo Sugar Africa is the biggest sugar processor in Africa and has operations in Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique. South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.

Whilst sugar is at the heart of what we do, the sugar production process provides opportunities to do more than simply manufacture an ingredient. We are an innovative and advanced manufacturer, producing a wide range of sugar and co-products. Additionally, we are an energy and power supplier and, as part of the wider agri-business value chain, we are an important contributor to the economy across all our locations.

See below for more information on our Sugar brands and businesses.

Our Sugar brands

Azucarera

Azucarera is the leading sugar company in Iberia offering a wide range of product choice for in-home consumption, from brown and white sugar to syrups and sweetener.

Azucarera website

Bwana Sukari

Bwana Sukari is produced by Kilombero Sugar and is a market leader in the branded sugar category, known and enjoyed by many across Tanzania.

Bwana Sukari website

Illovo "Trusted Quality"

Under the “Trusted Quality” brand, sugar produced by Illovo Sugar Malawi leads the sector - we are proudly local and in the homes of many Malawians starting their every day with Illovo – Tseketseke!

Illovo Sugar website

Whitespoon

Zambia Sugar produces the famous and trusted Whitespoon brand which is a household name and remains the market leader in the branded sugar category.

White Spoon website

Our Sugar businesses

AB Sugar is a leading producer of sugar and sugar derived co-products in Africa, the UK, Spain and north China. We operate 27 plants in 10 countries and have 32,000 employees. We have the capacity to produce some 4.5 million tonnes of sugar annually. Our products are sold into industry sectors including food and drink, pharmaceutical, industrial, agricultural and horticultural, power and energy.

AB Sugar website

AB Sugar China operates two sugar beet plants in northern China, producing over 180,000 tonnes of sugar annually, with co-products including molasses and animal feed.

AB Sugar China website

Azucarera is a leading sugar producer in Iberia, supplying industrial and retail customers in Spain and Portugal. With sugar beet plants, a logistics and packaging plant, a research and development centre, a raw sugar cane refinery and a power plant situated across northern and southern Spain; the business also produces co-products including animal feed, agricultural fertilisers and electricity.

Azucarera website

British Sugar is the sole processer of the UK’s sugar beet crop, producing around 1.2 million tonnes of sugar at its four advanced manufacturing plants across East Anglia and the East Midlands each year. We also produce a variety of co-products including animal feed, bioethanol, topsoil, aggregate, LimeX and electricity through our combined heat and power plants.

British Sugar website

Illovo is the largest cane sugar producer in Africa, with over 1.7 million tonnes produced annually. We have operations in Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia. We produce raw and refined sugar from sugar cane supplied by our own farms and independent growers, as well as a range of co-products including furfural and its derivatives, ethyl alcohol and co-generated electricity.

Illovo Sugar Africa website

Germains Seed Technology delivers value-added seed technology solutions to the seed industry and its growers. Specialising in seed priming, pelleting, filmcoating, polymers and health technologies, our investment in R&D continues to deliver innovative seed technologies that are compatible with ever-changing seed genetics, field conditions and regulations. Established in California 150 years ago, we now have nine locations across Europe and North America.

Germains website

Vivergo will be one of Europe’s biggest bioethanol producers and the United Kingdom’s largest single-source supplier of animal feed when it reopens in early 2022. At full production, we can produce enough bioethanol to meet half of the UK’s current demand.

Vivergo Fuels website

Sugar in action

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Other sectors to explore

Grocery

Our grocery brands occupy leading positions in markets across the globe. In the UK, nine out of ten households use our brands.

Learn more

Agriculture

AB Agri is a leading international agri-food business operating across the supply chain, producing and marketing animal feed, nutrition and technology-based products.

Learn more