Bacolod City – The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said that the government is seriously considering the purchase of sugar directly from farmers at a higher price, and sell it to consumers at a lower price, amid the sustained plummeting of the price of sugar.
In a press briefing, SRA head Paul Azcona yesterday assured sugar farmers that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is aware of the situation in the sugar industry and is taking steps to help the farmers and the industry.
The intervention of President Marcos Jr. has been sought by various sugar federations in the country, who also have reiterated their call for timely government intervention, as well as united action to address urgent critical issues faced by the industry.
“The government has always been looking at the idea of purchasing sugar directly from the farmers,” Azcona said, adding that they are now checking its legality, and what government agencies will be involved.
Asked how soon it will be implemented, Azcona said he wants it as soon as possible.
Negros Occidental 5th District Rep. Emilio “Dino” Yulo earlier encouraged government to start directly buying sugar from producers at a price that will give them some margin of profit, noting that sugar prices have gone below the cost of production.
Sugar importation was also blamed on plummeting millgate prices, from as high as more than P3,000 in previous years, to as low as between P2,500 to P2,300 per 50 kilo bag.
Azcona explained that all the importation program was based on available data at that certain time, stressing also that importation was not done in haste, or without basis.
The only problem that we’ve seen so far is the historical numbers for demand, or withdrawal, that has actually dropped significantly, with 20 percent in raw sugar, and 11.5 percent in refined sugar, the SRA head said.
Based on the current demand figures, there is no apparent need to import sugar, he pointed out. Asked if until when, Azcona said “we will only know our final production and demand numbers after the milling season.”
He also said that the drop in millgate prices of sugar is usually based on “market forces.”
If there is oversupply, the retail price should have dropped also. How come it is not dropping. Only the people involved in the trading side can explain it, Azcona said.
The only thing we can do now is to assure the consumers of a stable supply, especially in December, he added.
Regarding the manipulation of sugar prices, the SRA chief said he was told by traders that the problem is from wholesale to retail, and that sugar is being treated as a product, not a commodity anymore. (Gilbert Bayoran viaThe Visayan Daily Star (TVDS), photo courtesy of TVDS)
