DA orders SRA to regulate entry of sugar

The Department of Agriculture has ordered the Sugar Regulatory Administration to look into the actual volumes of ‘other sugars’ entering the country as reports of unregulated entry of premixes have been noted in staggering quantities in the last eight years. 

The United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED) along with other sugar stakeholders sought the help of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel during a consultative meeting last Tuesday to investigate the alarming volume of other sugars which they were told has reached about 200,000-300,000 metric tons per year and probably causing the stagnant demand for sugar in the past decade.

“This volume of sugar premixes represents about 4 million bags of sugar amounting to roughly P10 billion and the continued lack of regulation for these sugar-based products is highly detrimental to the sugar industry,” UNIFED President Manuel Lamata said. 

Lamata added that he is thankful for the “swift response” from Laurel who immediately ordered SRA Administrator Pablo Azcona to “look into the actual volumes of other sugars coming into the country and if warranted, require them to acquire clearances as well.”

Under tariff code 17.02 of the ASEAN Harmonized Tariff Nomenclature (AHTN), only high fructose corn syrup was strictly regulated when the sugar industry demanded that products using this sweetener must be taxed higher after a slump in sugar demand some eight years ago. 

However, other sugars like glucose, sucrose, maltose, dextrose, maltodextrin, and lactose among others are not being regulated and before we knew it, we received reports that they are coming in, in staggering amounts, Lamata said. 

 This, he added, is probably why demand for sugar has remained constant in the last 10 years or so despite the growth of population and if this is not addressed, then the sugar industry will be paying a hefty price along with the 5 million Filipinos dependent on the industry.  

We hope that Administrator Azcona will make this a priority and can provide us updates before the next milling season starts. 

The stakeholder consultation included members of the SRA Board, representatives from the Philippine Sugar Millers Association, and the sugar planters UNIFED, Luzon Federation, and the Mindanao Sugar Federation headed by Cong. Manuel Zubiri. 

Absent were representatives from the Sugar Council, “but they too were invited,” Lamata added. (TDE)