2 new SRA orders spark opposition in Negros, further threaten local sugar

2026-01-26 - 07:24

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – Sugar cane planters, millers and workers expressed strong opposition to new orders issued by the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), citing threats to domestic production and market stability. The directives, Sugar Order Nos. 2-2026 and 3-2026, were issued by the SRA board on January 9 but were only made known during a public consultation on the sugar crisis in Talisay City, Negros Occidental, on Friday, January 23. Industry stakeholders in Negros Occidental said they felt blindsided by the timing and content of the new regulations. Must Read Workers’ groups slam gov’t plan to export sugar amid price slump The Philippine Sugar Millers Association, Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations, National Federation of Sugarcane Planters, and Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers (PanayFed) reiterated their opposition to both SO 2 and SO 3. SO 2 establishes a sugar-buying scheme for traders: for every four bags of locally produced sugar purchased at P2,300 each, one bag must be reserved for export at P1,100 per bag. It was unanimously approved by the SRA board, including SRA Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona, planters’ representative Dave Sanson, and millers’ representative Ma. Mitzi Mangwag. SO 3, on the other hand, stipulates that for each bag of sugar exported, three bags of imported sugar will enter the domestic market. It, however, was unsigned by Mangwag. Both orders are now in effect, frustrating industry stakeholders. Those opposed to the orders said the moves were part of a broader push toward sugar import liberalization. “The eventual death of the sugar industry is imminent if sugar import liberalization continues,” said Wennie Sancho, secretary general of the General Alliance of Workers Association (GAWA). “Like SO 8 of 2025, we fear that by the end of the current crop year, sometime between August and December, there will again be a glut of imported sugar in local markets, displacing locally produced sugar,” said a representative of local planters. SO 8 of 2025 allowed imports of 424,000 metric tons (MT) against the planters’ recommended 150,000 MT. The sugar arrived in mid-September 2025, just two weeks before the milling season began on October 1. The resulting oversupply of 274,000 MT caused millgate prices of locally produced sugar to fall to a record low of P2,000 per 50-kilogram sack. Prices have risen slightly to P2,200 per sack, but planters said this remained below the P2,500 per sack standard cost of production. Rafael Coscolluela, former Negros Occidental governor and SRA administrator, said the SRA has failed to engage stakeholders in meaningful dialogue. “The problem boils down to lack of communication, transparency and participation. These three formed part of a crisis,” Coscolluela said. Labor groups also raised concerns about the impact on small-scale farmers. Roland de la Cruz, president of the National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, said, “As if we are always taken for granted, especially the 800,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) turned small sugar planters across the country.” ARBs account for 80% of Negros Island’s sugar output. The region, known as the Philippines’ “sugar bowl,” supplies about 65% of national sugar demand. Frank Carbon, vice president of the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the influx of low-priced imported sugar undermines local producers’ profits, distorts market prices, and risks triggering trade disputes. Negros Occidental 4th District Representative Jeffrey Ferrer called on both the Department of Agriculture and SRA to act on the concerns raised about the orders. “When President Marcos assumed office, the millgate price of sugar was P3,800 per bag. Now, it’s just P2,200 at most. There is indeed a crisis, and the DA and SRA should look for solutions,” Ferrer said. – Rappler.com