U.S. Sugar Program
The U.S. Sugar program is the federal commodity support program that maintains a minimum price for sugar, authorized by the 2002 farm bill to cover the 2002-2007 crops of sugar beets and sugarcane.
Originally designed to protect the incomes of the sugar industry-growers of sugarcane and sugar beets, and firms that process each crop into sugar - the program now prevents them from competing with producers of corn syrup sweetener. It supports domestic sugar prices by:
Import restrictions are intended to meet U.S. commitments under the North American Free Trade Agreement and Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture. Processor and refiner marketing allotments are set by USDA according to statutory requirements. Marketing allotments and new payment-in-kind authority are designed to help the USDA meet the no-cost-requirements to the federal government by avoiding the forfeiture of sugar put under loan. Other parts of the new program can include a storage loan program for sugar processors, and reduced the USDA interest rate charged on sugar loans.
Results
The U.S. Sugar program has led to two main outcomes: Higher sugar prices and higher profits for farmers. According to, in FY2025, sugar prices in the United States were 36.90¢/pound. The world price was 18.58¢/pound. Multiple analyses by trade experts have attributed higher prices to the Sugar Program. The impact of this, according to the American Enterprise Institute, is that "US sugar program has been shown to cost consumers $2.4–$4 billion a year and induce losses of 17,000 to 20,000 jobs in the food processing and confectionery industries." An October 2023 research review by the Government Accountability Office suggests that "the U.S. sugar program results in an increase in domestic sugar production and higher profits for farmers, totaling an estimated $1.4 billion to $2.7 billion in additional benefits annually." A 2006 analysis by the International Trade Administration concluded that "The existing literature on the economic effects of liberalization of U.S. sugar prices suggests that eliminating sugar quotas and tariff rate quotas and allowing sugar to enter the United States duty free would result in economic gains in the form of increased domestic food manufacturing production and U.S. exports, gains for consumers, taxpayer savings, and a net positive effect on U.S. employment."