How to Spot a Fake ICUMSA 45 Sugar Offer from Brazil (2026 Checklist)

Why ICUMSA 45 is the favourite product of fraudsters

ICUMSA 45 is the best-known grade of refined white sugar, and Brazil is the world's largest sugar exporter. That combination makes it the perfect story: a famous product, a famous origin, and a buyer who wants to believe there is a cheaper way in.

Real Brazilian supply is large but concentrated. Between January and September 2026, Brazil exported about 7.4 million tonnes of sugar, against 10.1 million tonnes in the same months of 2025 (MAPA / Secex). Most of that volume is raw VHP sugar, sold by a limited number of mills and trading houses with names, addresses and track records. A seller who cannot be placed in that picture is the first warning.

The 10-point checklist

1. 1
   The price is far below the market.

   Physical sugar is priced against public benchmarks (ICE Sugar No. 11 for raw, ICE White Sugar No. 5 for refined), plus or minus a premium for quality, freight and timing. An offer tens of dollars per tonne below those references, "because it is a special mill allocation", is not a bargain. It is the bait.
2. 2
   You are asked to pay before you see the product.

   Registration fees, "allocation" fees, legalisation, inspection or "port charges" paid upfront are the classic sign. Real sellers do not charge buyers to start a conversation.
3. 3
   You must issue a bank instrument before any due diligence.

   Requests for an SBLC, MT799, proof of funds or a bank comfort letter before you have verified the seller should stop the deal. Banks are the last step of a real trade, not the entry ticket.
4. 4
   The volume does not match the seller.

   100,000 tonnes a month is hundreds of millions of dollars a year. A company with no visible history, no warehouse and a Gmail address does not move that volume.
5. 5
   The mill has no name.

   "Brazilian mills", "our refinery partner" or "a top-5 group" is not a source. Ask for the producing mill's legal name and CNPJ (Brazil's company registry number). Then check it yourself.
6. 6
   The email domain is almost right.

   Fraudsters impersonate large Brazilian sugar groups with look-alike domains: an extra letter, a different ending, even invisible characters that imitate a normal letter. Compare the domain character by character with the company's official website.
7. 7
   Nobody will get on a video call.

   A real commercial team will meet you on camera, from a company address, with names you can find on the company's website or LinkedIn. Endless excuses are an answer.
8. 8
   The documents are old, generic or belong to someone else.

   "Proof of product" made of an old SGS report, a bill of lading for another buyer, or a certificate with no link to the seller. Real documents can be checked with the issuer.
9. 9
   There is a long chain of mandates.

   "Seller's mandate", "buyer's mandate", "facilitator", "sub-mandate". Each layer hides who is really on the other side and adds a commission that does not exist in a real deal.
10. 10
    The procedure is a copy-paste template.

    ICPO → FCO → SPA → BCL → partial POP → MT799 → SBLC → full POP, word for word from the internet, "ICC approved". Real contracts are written around the actual parties, port, laycan and quality, not around a script.

What a real Brazilian sugar trade looks like

How BrazilTrad works with sugar buyers

BrazilTrad is a São Paulo–based commodity intelligence company. We work on the buyer's side: we find and check the counterparty before you commit.

• We do not take credit risk, and we do not ask you to.

  Every transaction we coordinate is guaranteed bank to bank: no shipment without documents backed by a first-tier bank (letter of credit or equivalent).

• We check identity before price.

  Our platform holds more than 1,200 companies with confirmed identity, and every new counterparty is checked against the company registry, its legal representatives and sanctions lists.

• Two levels of verification.

  Basic ($1,999, 24 hours) and Complete ($3,999, 3 working days) — see Counterparty verification.

• Direct connection is free.

  If we introduce a counterparty and you close a deal, a transaction fee applies; otherwise, you pay nothing.

Frequently asked questions