GRAMERCY, LA. — Louisiana Sugar Refining, LLC, a joint venture between Cargill and Louisiana Sugar Growers and Refiners, Inc., announced plans to expand the operation of its sugar refinery to process more Louisiana raw cane sugar.

The expansion will include infrastructure enhancements to increase refinery capacity, such as increasing daily melt and production of more value-added products, and to improve its packaging capabilities, the company said. In addition, LSR is adding more rail tracks and expanding loadout operations to move product faster and more efficiently. The improvements will equip LSR to be a leading processor for all of Louisiana’s raw sugar production. The company said the project is scheduled to be completed in early 2023.

“We’ve been able to creatively engineer our available space to increase efficiencies and reliability of most, if not all, of the plant’s components,” said Larry Faucheux, chief executive officer of LSR. “With investments in people and new equipment, new integrated control systems and now the infrastructure, LSR has the potential to be the first US refinery to process 1.5 million tons of high-quality raw sugar. This investment is a testament to our commitment to driving continuous and future growth of LSR.”

The company said it relies on 400 local employees to refine more than 1 million tons of raw sugar annually, which represents more than two-thirds of the sugarcane grown in Louisiana. About 800 growers located within a 110-mile radius of the plant currently supply the refinery with all its raw sugar needs through SUGAR, a cooperative of growers who patronize SUGAR’s eight mills. Cargill markets the sugar produced at LSR.