NFSP lauds SRA for 100% ‘B sugar’ allocation

Enrique D. Rojas, president of the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters (NFSP), lauded Sugar Regulatory Administrator Pablo Luis S. Azcona for allocating all the country’s projected sugar production for Crop Year 2024-2025 (September 1, 2024 to August 31, 2025) for the domestic market.

“With the expected shortfall of domestic sugar production versus the estimated domestic demand, it is a good move on the part of the Sugar Regulatory Administration to allocate all domestic sugar production as ‘B’ sugar for the domestic market,” said Rojas.

The NFSP President referred to Sugar Order No. 1, Series of 2024-2025 issued and released by the SRA on September 9, 2024. The said sugar order was approved by Agriculture Secretary and concurrent SRA Board Chairperson Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., and bears the signatures of Usec Roger V. Navarro as Alternate Ex-Officio Chairperson, Azcona as SRA Administrator and CEO, and SRA Board Members Ma. Mitzi V. Mangwag (Millers’ Representative) and David Andrew L. Sanson (Planters’ Representative).

Under Sugar Order No. 1, the SRA projects total raw sugar production for Crop Year 2024-2025 at 1.78 million metric tons “due to anticipated negative effect of the prolonged El Niňo phenomenon; unless the La Niňa phenomenon brings about an increase in production”.

Total domestic raw sugar withdrawal for Crop Year 2024-2025 is estimated at 2.2 million MT, according to SRA, implying a shortfall of more than 400,000 MT, in terms of projected domestic production versus demand.

In pursuit of its mandate to “establish and maintain a balanced relationship between sugar production and the requirements of sugar, and to maintain such marketing conditions as will ensure stabilized prices at levels reasonably profitable to the producers and fair to consumers”, the SRA declared that all domestic sugar production will be classified as “B” sugar, which is intended for the domestic market.

The SRA classifies domestic sugar production every start of the crop year, based on the volume and intended market, to ensure fair prices for both the producers and consumers. Sugar production is normally classified as “A” for export to the United States, “B” for the domestic market, “C” as reserve sugar to be converted later into other classes of sugar, and “D” for export to the world market.

“Our Federation appreciates this move by the SRA allocating all domestic production for the domestic market, which traditionally brings a more favorable price for producers, compared to other classifications of sugar. We are hoping that the weather for the rest of the crop year will be favorable to give us an opportunity to recover the projected production shortfall,” Rojas added.*