Sri Lanka to tax ethanol and sugar imports to subsidize cane farmers

In Sri Lanka, as part of the 2017 budget proposed in parliament, the government has laid out a 5% import levy on ethanol that, in conjunction with a 2% levy on sugar imports, would create a fund to support farmers to grow sugarcane, shielding them from price fluctuations and crop losses. To support the farmers growing cane, they government will also provide government-owned land to investors to set up cane mills with a minimum of 2,000 metric tons crushed per day.