SUGAR Regulatory Administration (SRA) Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona said all sugar produced in the coming crop year will be classified as “B” or domestic sugar.
Azcona made the announcement during the 71st Philsutech Convention at the Waterfront Hotel, Cebu on August 13, 2025, where SRA traditionally declares sugar classification when the administrator gives industry updates for stakeholders attending the annual convention.
In his report, Azcona said that as of July 27, 2025, total raw sugar production had reached 2.084 million metric tons, with almost 26 million metric tons of canes milled in a total of 405,000 hectares—392,000 hectares planted for sugar and 13,000 hectares for bioethanol.
Azcona highlighted the progress of the sugar industry under President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.’s administration, lauding the President's concern for the sector.
He said Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel and the SRA will present their proposal for an P8-billion budget for soil rejuvenation and small-scale irrigation, which will cover about 160,000 hectares over a three-year period.
“It is crucial, along with our other proposals, including P1.2 billion for 20,000 hectares dedicated to the propagation of high-yielding variety plantlets,” Azcona said.
He added that the industry’s productivity in the past three years was largely due to the distribution of high-yielding variety canes, and that the SRA intends to focus on this along with other scientific farming approaches learned from foreign partners to achieve self-sustainability.
While the SRA is hopeful the industry will continue its growth trend, Azcona remains cautious as he calls on sugar farmers to remain vigilant and work with the SRA in preventing the spread of the Red Stripe Soft Scale Insect (RSSI) infestation, which has affected over 3,200 hectares in Negros Island and Panay.
“These are validated field inspections, but the figures could be much higher, and the effects on our sugar canes are not yet known,” Azcona said.
He added that they will soon start testing the sugar content of recovered canes.
“A study in Egypt has shown as much as a 50 percent drop in sugar content from RSSI-infected canes,” Azcona said.
Regarding the Sugar Industry Development Act (Sida), Azcona said the industry might be granted a P1-billion Sida fund for the coming year, but there are moves from industry stakeholders to seek an amendment to increase the Sida funding from the P2-billion annual allocation to P5 billion, considering the substantial contribution of the sugar industry to the national coffers.
Azcona also presented at least two international cooperation programs with Japan and Brazil and said they are exploring more collaborations with other sugar-producing countries, particularly on sugar cane varietal exchange and propagation.
Moreover, he hailed Mindanao farmers as this year’s heroes of the sugar industry, attributing the biggest growth in production to members of the newly formed sugar federation led by its president, former congressman Manuel Zubiri.
“Mindanao will likely be our last frontier in our road towards sustainability,” Azcona said.
He also enjoined others to welcome the new federation, which marched alongside industry leaders for the first time in the annual convention.
Azcona further announced that the official start of the milling season will be October 1, or the Monday closest to that date, following a three-year transition period to bring it back to the last quarter of the year.
However, with October 1 falling on a Wednesday, he said they may declare it open on September 29. (MAP)