UNIFED Lauds DA, SRA for Strengthening Laws vs Molasses Importation and RSSI

The United Sugar Producers’ Federation of the Philippines (UNIFED) thanked the Department of Agriculture and the Sugar Board for finally closing the loophole on the use of imported molasses that was detrimental to the sugar industry through Sugar Order No. 4.

“This was an oversight that could have killed the industry had it not been amended,” UNIFED President Manuel Lamata said, adding that they find it “strange” that “despite two amendments to Sugar Order No. 14, Series of 2008-2009, no one bothered to correct Section 6 that allowed the importation of products derived from sugarcane and sugar as feedstock for bioethanol production.”

“It was clearly unlawful and more so during that time when the ethanol industry was at its infancy, with just one ethanol plant running, so demand for molasses was low and could have been easily covered by local raw material producers,” Lamata said, asking “what was in it for the people who wrote it, who kept it, and were totally mum about it?” While other groups are just bent on criticizing what the current administration has done and is doing, “it was only the Marcos administration that had the nerve to issue policies on molasses import regulations,” Lamata added.

UNIFED also reiterates their support to the existing RSSI Task Force formed last year, headed by our beloved governor, and composed of various government agencies, the sugar federations, and the province, and we hope this will be strengthened at the cities and municipalities level.

We saw a rise in RSSI infestation last year and also saw a decline as the Task Force did its job. With the resurgence, the Governor and the SRA saw the need to involve the rest of the industry, at least those who are willing to work with them, to ensure that damage caused by RSSI infestation will be arrested, Lamata said.

“We do not need to create a new task force just so one group who has not done anything but complain can be accommodated. What have they done to help when it was clear that sugar federations were also part of the task force created last year?,” he added.

“Why are they complaining about the effort of SRA who put the time and budget to actually answer the industry’s call to help the farmers? Don’t we want any help? I suggest we put our money where our mouths are!” Lamata said.

Many of us who believe that this is the time to unite and we will continue to work alongside those who truly have the best interest of the sugar industry, he said, adding that, “this is why we are actually organizing a series of gatherings and we are scheduled to sit down with Negros Oriental leaders as well because we know how crucial it is that we get our acts together and not just protect our provincial borders but the entire island and even beyond.”* (PR)