• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) on Monday (Nov. 18) strongly disputed claims there is an oversupply of sugar, which was blamed to a drop in sugar prices, and slammed critics for propagating lies.
In a statement, Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona said that “sugar stock levels have been constant in the past couple of months” and “claims from certain groups that there is an oversupply of sugar that purportedly caused a drop in sugar prices is laced with malice, unless it is their goal to announce oversupply to purposely try and lower prices”.
Azcona decried the presumption of the Sugar Council and National Congress of Unions in the Sugarcane Industry (Nacusip) that the recent joint announcement made by the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) and the Department of Agriculture (DA), that no importation will happen until post-harvest, was intended to curb the drop in millgate prices.
“There was no other intention for that announcement other than stand by our mandate to be transparent and keep the stakeholders informed, and the Sugar Council would have known that if they attend stakeholders’ meetings being called by the DA and the SRA instead of propagating lies through the media, to cause separation and instability within the industry,” Azcona said.
In a joint statement, the Sugar Council, composed of the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters, Confederation of Sugar Producers Association Inc., and Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers Inc., said that the statement issued by the DA and the SRA was apparently meant to allay fears that more importation would cause further drop in sugar prices.
“I used to have respect for those so-called sugar leaders, who I thought were my friends since childhood, and I’ve always reiterated that I am a phone call away. However, they would rather bring their concerns before the media to further destabilize the industry, then send a letter after the fact, and that does not sit well with me,” Azcona said.
He explained that the announcement of no importation until the end of harvest, which is sometime May or June depending on harvest circumstances, was simply an announcement for the stakeholders, and nothing more.
“Their opinion that it was meant to curb prices is their own opinion based on their skewed perception,” Azcona further said.
“All of the SRA and DA’s plans are discussed in stakeholder meetings led by DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, the last of which was Aug. 6 but just like in other instances, the Sugar Council snubbed this meeting,” he recalled.
Azcona reiterated that stocks of raw and refined sugar are at the proper levels, maintaining the needed buffers.
“As of Nov. 10, 2024, our production of sugar is down by 61 percent, and we have prepared for this with the proper buffer supply, and as to their claims of oversupply for both raw and refined sugar, we are currently 35-37 percent below the levels recorded last year,” he further said.
Azcona added: “If the so-called Sugar Council wants to be informed of the plans and policies of the sugar industry, they should be attending consultative meetings, instead of propagating false claims. It is also part of SRA’s charter that we have no hand in marketing and pricing of sugar, and this is known to all sugar stakeholders as well.” | GB
