Sugar prices up in Metro Manila markets

Sugar prices in Metro Manila have increased from the levels seen in the past year, with producers saying this could be reversed if costs of petroleum and fertilizer were rolled back.

Department of Agriculture (DA) monitoring showed that prices in Metro Manila ranged from P90 to P110 per kilogram for refined; P83 to P95 per kilogram for washed; and P80 to P97 for brown sugar as of last Friday, January 13.

Four months ago on September 13, average prices were recorded at P95 for refined; P75 for washed; and P70 for brown.

According to the United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines (UNIFED), the higher prices are due to traders and retailers, but this could be offset if prices of other costs are rolled back.

“‘Yung mga trader at saka retailer sila naman ang nagpapataas eh, hindi naman ‘yung planter,” UNIFED President Manuel Lamata said in a report on GMA’s “24 Oras Weekend” on Sunday.

“Basta ‘yung fuel price po, bababa din sa P40, and then ‘yung fertilizer bababa sa 800 (pesos), lahat po ibabalik natin, pwede ibalik natin,” he added.

(The traders and the retailers are causing the hikes, not the planters… As long as fuel prices are decreased to P40 and fertilizers to P800, we can return to previous levels.)

At present, millgate prices range from P70 to P75 per kilogram for white sugar and P60 to P65 per kilogram for brown, with a planters' representative saying middlemen are justified in adding P28 per kilogram for white, and P18 to P20 per kilogram for brown sugar.

“Ayaw din po ng mga farmers natin na sobrang tumaas ‘yung retail kasi po ‘pag sobrang tumaas ‘yung retail, magiging issue siya and then papasok ‘yung gobyerno, i-force ng gobyerno ibaba ‘yung retail,” said Pablo Azona, the planters' representative to the Sugar Regulatory Board.

“‘Yung problema naman dun po, ‘yung kita ng mga tao in between, hindi naman nila po babawasan. Ibababa nila ‘yung retail, kawawa na talaga si farmer. Naiipit siya kasi sa baba,” he added.

(Our farmers do not want the retail prices to increase too much because this causes the government to intervene and lower retail prices. The problem with that is the middlemen will not decrease their prices, and the farmers will be shortchanged.)

For its part, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said it is monitoring the situation along with the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA).

“We are closely coordinating with the Sugar Regulatory Administration on the harvest at saka ‘yung atin pong production at saka ‘yun ating pong pag-distribute sa ating mga markets, (and the production and distribution to the markets},” DA Deputy Spokesperson Rex Estoperez said. — Jon Viktor Cabuenas/DVM, GMA Integrated News