Panela
Panela is unrefined whole cane sugar made by pressing raw sugarcane juice and open-kettle boiling it down without centrifugation, so the molasses stays in the solid rather than being spun out as with white or raw centrifugal sugar. The boiled juice is poured into moulds and cooled into blocks, cones or discs, or worked and sieved into granulated form. It is sold as a direct food sweetener and cooking ingredient, and as an ingredient input for bakery, beverage, confectionery and distilling use. Because the cane juice is never refined or bleached, panela carries measurable mineral and reducing-sugar content that pure sucrose does not.
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Listed panela markets
Each line is a grade at a delivery point. Open one for its full specification and terms.
Price guarantee on panela
If a move in the panela price would hurt you, fix the price now. We agree it today for the months you name, and it holds whatever the market does in between.
| Buying | You use or resell panela and need to know your cost. We fix your purchase price for the quantity and months you name. |
|---|---|
| Selling | You grow, produce or hold panela and need to know your revenue. We fix your sale price ahead of production or shipment. |
| Settlement | Against delivery of the panela. |
A price is fixed only once a trader confirms it in writing. Ask the desk for a fixed price.
Caps and floors on panela
A fixed price binds buyer and seller. A cap or a floor is a guaranteed price on one side only. You pay a fee up front for it, and it is a right, not an obligation: you use it only if the market moves against you.
| Cap | For buyers. A guaranteed maximum price for panela. If the market is above the cap when you buy, you pay the cap. If it is below, you buy at the market price and let the cap lapse. |
|---|---|
| Floor | For sellers. A guaranteed minimum price for panela. If the market is below the floor when you sell, you receive the floor. If it is above, you sell at the market price and let the floor lapse. |
| Fee | Agreed and paid up front. It is the whole cost of the cap or floor, and it is not refunded if the cap or floor goes unused. |
A cap or a floor is in place only once a trader confirms it in writing. Ask the desk for a cap or a floor.
Grades
A sample is assayed for total sucrose content, reducing-sugar content, moisture, ash, and trace mineral levels (potassium, calcium, phosphorus, iron), plus screening for contaminant limits (lead, arsenic, sulphite residue) and a check that no added colorant is present. Block and granulated/powdered panela are assayed against different threshold sets because moisture and particle handling differ by form.
Panela Physical-Chemical Requirements
2 grades
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| BLOQUEPanela en bloque (block/cone form) | Sucrose minimum 83.0%, reducing sugars minimum 0.2%, moisture maximum 9.0%, ash 0.8% to 5.5%, potassium minimum 100 mg/100g, calcium minimum 10 mg/100g, phosphorus minimum 5 mg/100g, iron minimum 1.5 mg/100g, protein minimum 0.2%, lead maximum 0.2 mg/kg, arsenic maximum 0.1 mg/kg, sulphite (SO2) maximum below 0.05 mg/kg, no added colorant. |
| GRANULADAPanela granulada o pulverizada (granulated/powdered form) | Sucrose minimum 93.0%, reducing sugars maximum 5.0%, moisture maximum 5.0%, ash maximum 1.0%, mineral minimums as for block form, same contaminant limits, no added colorant. |
Grades outside this list trade on request. NTC 1311 sets no formal colour-grade ladder; colour varies naturally with cane variety and boil, and the standard states this explicitly rather than assigning colour a grade.
Locations
| Country | Region | We trade it as |
|---|---|---|
| Colombia | Boyaca / Santander (Hoya del Rio Suarez basin) | Origin |
| United States | national | Destination |
Locations outside this list trade on request.
Timing
Sugarcane for panela on this basin runs an approximately 17-month vegetative cycle rather than a single annual crop, and growers stagger planting across plots, so trapiches (mills) cut and boil in overlapping batches through most of the year instead of clearing one discrete harvest window. Arrival to a buyer is fixed against a specific mill's confirmed run date rather than a fixed seasonal calendar.
HarvestArrival
| Origin | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | Window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colombia | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest Jan to Dec, arrival Jan to DecStaggered, near-continuous milling driven by the cane's ~17-month vegetative cycle rather than one seasonal harvest; confirm a specific trapiche's cutting/boiling date before quoting an arrival window. |
Windows outside this pattern trade on request.
Common questions
What grades of panela does SIP Global trade?
We quote 2 published grades of panela, including BLOQUE - Panela en bloque (block/cone form) and GRANULADA - Panela granulada o pulverizada (granulated/powdered form). Every grade is tied to a delivery point and a settlement route. Grades outside the published list are priced on request.
How is panela graded?
A sample is assayed for total sucrose content, reducing-sugar content, moisture, ash, and trace mineral levels (potassium, calcium, phosphorus, iron), plus screening for contaminant limits (lead, arsenic, sulphite residue) and a check that no added colorant is present. Block and granulated/powdered panela are assayed against different threshold sets because moisture and particle handling differ by form. Grading runs on 1 system: Panela Physical-Chemical Requirements.
Where does SIP Global trade panela?
We trade panela in Colombia and United States. Origins and destinations outside this list trade on request. We are not limited to the locations shown.
When is panela harvested and when does it arrive?
Typical windows are Colombia: harvest jan to dec, arrival jan to dec. Harvest is when the lot is taken at origin, arrival is when a shipment from that origin lands in a consuming market. Windows outside this pattern, including carry, trade on request.
Can I fix a panela price ahead?
Yes. SIP Global fixes a panela price ahead for buyers and for sellers, as a price guarantee. Send the grade, the quantity and the months you need covered. We settle against delivery, and a price is fixed only once a trader confirms it in writing.
How do I get a price for panela?
Send the grade, the origin and the delivery window to the SIP Global desk. That is enough for a trader to come back with a level and a settlement route. 5 listed panela markets are published on this page, each with its full specification and terms. We buy and sell the physical cargo, prompt to long dated.
Standards and data sources
The grading language on this sheet follows published standards. Trade volumes and tariff lines are public record. Verify anything here against the source.
- UN Comtrade (opens in new tab)Official international trade statistics by HS code
- ITC Trade Map (opens in new tab)Bilateral trade flows and tariff data
- FAOSTAT (opens in new tab)FAO production and trade series for agricultural commodities