Do Caribbean Countries Buy Sugar from Guyana? No — Guyana Imports Sugar (Mostly from Brazil)

False premise. Guyana is a net sugar importer, not an exporter to the Caribbean.

📉 Guyana’s Sugar Reality

• Historic industry (Demerara sugar) collapsed: GuySuCo closed 4/7 estates (2017–2018).
• Production: ~60,000 tonnes/yr (down from 300k+ in 1970s).
• Domestic demand > production — imports fill gap.

🇧🇷 Primary Source: Brazil

• World’s #1 producer/exporter (40M+ tonnes).
• Georgetown imports refined & raw sugar from Brazil via Paranaguá/Santos.
• CARICOM trade preferences exist but Brazil’s scale/logistics win.

🌴 Caribbean Sugar Trade (Actual)

• Exporters: Belize, Jamaica, Barbados, Guyana (tiny), Dominican Republic (large).
• Importers: Most CARICOM states (Trinidad, Bahamas, etc.) buy from global market / Brazil / DR.
• EPA/UK/CAFTA-DR shape quotas.

🔮 Guyana’s Future

• Oil boom (Exxon, 11B+ barrels) → sugar further marginalized.
• Diversification: rice, aquaculture, tourism, carbon credits.
• Skeldon/Albion factory rehab attempted — uneconomic at current scale.

Guyana doesn’t sweeten the Caribbean — Brazil does.