Agriculture department orders SRA to regulate sugar imports

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD CITY – The Department of Agriculture has instructed the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) to investigate the volumes of “other sugars” entering the country, following reports of unregulated entries of premixes in staggering quantities over the past eight years.

The United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED), along with other sugar stakeholders, sought the assistance of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel during a consultative meeting on Tuesday to address the alarming volume of these sugars.

Reports indicate that the annual importation has reached about 200,000-300,000 metric tons, potentially contributing to the stagnant demand for sugar over the past decade.

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

Lamata expressed gratitude for the “swift response” from Laurel, who immediately directed 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 is strictly regulated.

This regulation came after the sugar industry demanded higher taxes on products using this sweetener following a slump in sugar demand eight years ago.

However, other sugars such as glucose, sucrose, maltose, dextrose, maltodextrin, and lactose are not regulated.

“Before we knew it, we received reports that these sugars were coming in staggering amounts,” Lamata said.

The unregulated importation likely explains why sugar demand has remained constant over the last decade despite population growth.

Lamata warned that if this issue is not addressed, the sugar industry and the 5 million Filipinos dependent on it will face significant challenges.

“We hope that Administrator Azcona will make this a priority and provide us with updates before the next milling season starts,” Lamata added.

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

Absent were representatives from the Sugar Council, although they were also invited, Lamata noted.