Three sugar producers’ groups are asking how the Sugar Regulatory Administration arrived at its the proposed importation figure of 150,000 metric tons of sugar.
The National Federation of Sugarcane Planters (NFSP), Confederation of Sugarcane Producers Associations (Confed) and Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers (Panayfed) sough clarification on the importation figure in a letter sent to SRA Acting Administrator David John Thaddeus Alba on Wednesday, August 31.
The importation of 150,000 metric tons of sugar is contained in the draft Sugar Order No. 2 which SRA intends to issue.
“It is not clear how and why SRA arrived at the figure of 150,000 MT. We would appreciate being advised on the figures used as reference, so that we can reconcile our own data and come up with a consistent rationale for the volumes involved, as well as the delivery schedules proposed,” the leaders of the three groups said in a press release.
NFSP’s Enrique D. Rojas, Confed’s Raymond Montinola, and Panayfed’s Danilo Abelita sent the letter in response to a request sent by Alba to all planters’ federations, sugar millers and other stakeholders, asking for their comments on the proposed Sugar Order No. 2 (Crop Year 2022-2023), which will allow the importation of 150,000 MT sugar.
The three planters’ federations, together with the Philippine Sugar Millers Association which has also recommended the importation of 300,000 metric tons sugar, account for majority of the country’s sugar production.
Based on their analysis of the supply/demand situation submitted by SRA itself, the producers had earlier recommended a total importation of 300,000 MT, with an initial importation of 150,000 MT to arrive as soon as possible, and to be followed by another 150,000 MT to meet domestic requirements until the peak of milling in November, the three groups said.
They warned that sugar production at the start of the new milling season will not be enough to meet the expected demand from August to October. Thus, a buffer stock is needed to meet domestic sugar requirements until milling peaks in November.
The producers emphasized the need to urgently address the current supply shortage, considering that the shortage has already forced some beverage manufacturers and food processors to close their operations, resulting to loss of jobs and income to many employees of the affected companies.
They also pointed out that, aside from the acute shortage which the country is experiencing this crop year, there is also a looming shortage for the coming crop year.
“It is also worth noting that SRA’s last Crop Estimate for the new crop was 1,876,000 MT, which is far short of estimated domestic demand of at least 2.3 million MT (up from the previous average of 2.1 million MT due to increasing population and a recovering economy). This expected shortfall will further exacerbate the situation at the later part of the new milling season, which SRA should factor in,” the producers explained.
SRA should monitor market conditions to determine the appropriate time and calibrate the arrival of any additional importation that may be needed, the producers added.
The producers also proposed to SRA that, instead of “C” (reserve) sugar classification, the proposed importation should be directly classified as “B” (domestic market) sugar to minimize the time it will take for the imports to reach the intended markets.
They also requested SRA to clarify the selling price level which it aims to achieve with the proposed importation, in order to address the clear profiteering that has been going on, to the detriment of consumers and without even benefitting the producers.
“In order to assist producers who are suffering from drastic increases in production costs and low purity of cane due to early milling, we request SRA to consider allowing the participation of eligible producers’ groups in the proposed importation, in volumes proportionate to their production,” the producers group further recommended to SRA.*PR