Sugar Board wants all sugar production allocated for domestic use

The Philippines might be allocating all the sugar produced during the next crop year for local use, the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said Tuesday.

In a statement, SRA Acting Administrator David Alba said that the “Sugar Board was recently convened by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and we were directed to immediately come up with Sugar Order No. 1 regarding sugar allocation.”

The Sugar Board is the governing body of the SRA. It is chaired by Marcos, who is concurrently sitting as the secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Alba said the Sugar Board recommended that all sugar for crop year 2022-2023 will be classified as “B” sugar or domestic sugar.

The country’s sugar crop year begins every September and ends in August of the following year.

Meanwhile, the SRA classifies and allocates sugar produced as “A” for US quota, “B” for domestic consumption, “C” for reserve, and “D” for the world market.

“There will be no allocation for the US quota,” Alba said.

Under an agreement with the World Trade Organization, the US committed to import sugar from sugar-producing countries, such as the Philippines, at lower tariffs and at certain quantities.

For the Philippines, the US Department of Agriculture has an allocation of 145,235 metric tons of sugar for its crop year 2023 or from October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2023. 

Alba said the proposed Sugar Order No. 1 for crop year 2022-2023 “will, of course, be subjected to thorough consultation with all industry stakeholders.”

“We also came up with Sugar Order No. 2 which recommends the importation of 150,000 metric tons of refined sugar,” he said.

“While in principle this has been approved, we still need to draw up the mechanics covering this order after consultations as well,” he added.

Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles earlier confirmed that the proposed amount of sugar that will be imported is 150,000 metric tons. 

Sugar is on the spotlight following the controversial issuance of Sugar Order No. 4 (SO4), authorizing the importation of 300,000 metric tons of sugar which was later on deemed “illegal” as it was signed without the knowledge and expressed approval of Marcos.

Signatories of the controversial order, including Agriculture Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian, board member Atty. Roland Beltran, and Sugar Regulatory Administration administrator Hermenegildo Serafica, have quit from their posts.

Marcos earlier rejected the proposal to import 300,000 metric tons of sugar despite the increasing prices of the basic commodity due to supply constraints.

The DA earlier said there is a shortage of about 300,000 metric tons of sugar as local production was affected by the onslaught of Typhoon Odette late last year. —KG, GMA News