Subject: Critical: Addressing Late Payments Directive's Revision Impact on the EU Sugar Industry
From: Iñigo Lizarraga Torrano <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Cc: <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, "Marie-Christine Ribera" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 2024 14:25:30 +0300

To the Minister of Trade of Estonia:

Dear Minister,

I hope this email finds you well.

On behalf of CEFS (European Association of Sugar Manufacturers) Director
General Ms Marie-Christine Ribera, please find attached a letter outlining
our concerns regarding the revision of the Late Payments Directive and its
potential impact on the EU sugar sector.

The revision of the Late Payments Directive has significant implications
for the EU sugar industry, which operates under unique conditions that
distinguish it from other agricultural sectors.

*	The EU beet sugar industry is heavily dependent on seasonal
cycles, with sugar beet harvests occurring once a year. This requires a
well-coordinated financial and operational structure to manage the long
intervals between planting and harvesting.
*	Additionally, sugar beet processing into sugar involves lengthy
production cycles requiring significant upfront investment and operational
costs, making timely payments critical. Disruptions in cash flow can have
severe repercussions for sugar manufacturers.

Therefore, CEFS strongly opposes the European Parliament's amendment
allowing operators to extend business-to-business payment terms to 60 days
through explicit contractual agreements. This amendment could create cash
flow issues where sugar manufacturers are required to pay for sugar beets
within 30 days while potentially waiting up to 60 days for payments from
sugar users (secondary processors and retailers). This disparity between
payment terms would increase costs for sugar manufacturers, as the cash
flow shortage would need to be financed with debt or reallocated capital.

In light of these serious concerns, we urgently request that the EU
Council rejects the European Parliament's amendment, which would undermine
the financial stability of the EU beet sugar industry.

Thank you for your attention to this critical issue. We look forward to
your understanding and support.

All the best, and wishing you a pleasant day,

Iñigo

Iñigo Lizarraga Torrano
Trade and Economic Affairs Policy Manager

 +32 456 26 76 42
 <mailto:# [email-masked]>  [email-masked]

 +32 2 762 07 60
 Avenue de Tervuren 268
 B-1150, Brussels, Belgium

 <http://www.cefs.org/>  www.cefs.org
 <http://twitter.com/sugareurope/>  @SugarEurope

<https://cefs.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Corporate-Social-Responsibili
ty-Report-2022-23-2.pdf>

The information contained in this email, including any attachment, is
confidential and intended solely for the person or entity to whom it is
addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not take any
action in reliance of it, or copy, distribute or disseminate the
information. If you have received this message in error, do not open any
attachment but please notify the sender and delete this email, including
any attachment, from your system. Whilst every care has been taken to
ensure that this transmission is virus free, please use your own means of
virus checking as no responsibility is taken by the sender for any loss or
damage arising from any virus infection. Any view expressed in this
message is that of the individual sender, except where the sender
specifically states otherwise.