Farm groups press SRA over price drop, import row

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD CITY — Growing unrest in the sugar industry intensified as farmer groups and labor unions accused the Sugar Regulatory Administration of mismanagement, lack of transparency, and policies they say triggered sharp declines in sugar and molasses prices.

The National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines, together with agrarian reform beneficiary groups, on Monday demanded immediate accountability from the SRA, warning that the ongoing price slump has plunged sugar workers and small farmers into deeper poverty.

Meanwhile, the VICMICO Planters Multi-Purpose Cooperative clarified that its minimal participation in the SRA’s importation program under Sugar Order No. 2 (2024-2025) does not constitute endorsement of over-importation amid accusations linking it to the issue.

“Our less than one percent participation in SRA’s voluntary purchase program under Sugar Order No. 2 does not equate to endorsement of over-importation,” said Jose Maria Montinola, chairman of VICMICO Planters MPC, in reaction to what he called “malicious and misleading” statements made by United Sugar Producers Federation president Manolet Lamata.

Montinola said the cooperative’s participation — only 313.21 metric tons, or 0.06% of the 500,000-metric-ton allocation — was aimed at providing additional income opportunities for farmers.

“The program was SRA-initiated and numbers-based. Our involvement was done in good faith to support our members,” he said.

He also corrected claims that Aurelio Gerardo Valderrama, president of CONFED, was connected to the cooperative’s participation.

“Mr. Valderrama is not even an officer of VICMICO Planters MPC,” Montinola stressed.

Montinola added that the cooperative had long cautioned against excessive importation, warning that it could depress farmgate prices and displace local production.

“Year after year, traders profit from the hard work of farmers who remain poor. We saw the program as a way to help them directly — not as a way to harm the industry,” he emphasized.

He said the controversy is part of a larger pattern of attacks against grassroots cooperatives and reform-oriented groups “daring to challenge a broken system that has favored big traders and sidelined small farmers for decades.”

Industry observers have described the backlash as politically motivated and meant to divert attention from the absence of safeguards, transparency, and accountability in SRA import policies.

On the labor side, NACUSIP president Roland dela Cruz lambasted the SRA’s continued silence and alleged failure to manage sugar prices.

“The SRA’s failure to stabilize prices and provide transparent information is not mere negligence — it is oppression,” dela Cruz said.

“We are not expendable parts of the system. We are the backbone of this industry, and we will not be ignored,” he added.

NACUSIP and allied groups demanded a complete public disclosure of the SRA’s pricing methodology for weekly millgate prices, an independent audit of sugar and molasses stocks in all mills and warehouses, and the immediate suspension of any importation plans pending genuine consultation with unions and agrarian reform beneficiaries.

The union warned that if the SRA continues to avoid accountability, it will launch nationwide protest actions and pursue legal remedies to defend the welfare of sugar workers and smallholders.

“We refuse to stay silent. We refuse to accept vague explanations. We demand clear answers — now,” NACUSIP said.

Both NACUSIP and VICMICO Planters MPC urged Congress to conduct an independent investigation into alleged over-importation by the SRA as stakeholders unite in calls for reforms that protect farmers, mill workers, and industry integrity.

Earlier, the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters and the Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers joined the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations in demanding an explanation from the SRA over steep price declines at the start of the milling season.

NFSP president Enrique D. Rojas and Panayfed president Danilo A. Abelita said farmers deserve to know why prices have dropped to PHP 2,200 to PHP 2,300 per bag from last crop year’s PHP 2,700 to PHP 2,800.

The federations were reacting to CONFED president Aurelio Gerardo J. Valderrama Jr.’s open letter to SRA Administrator Pablo Luis S. Azcona, which cited over-importation and the influx of artificial sweeteners as causes of the slump that “flooded the market, depressed prices, and left producers without buyers.”

CONFED said the SRA, with real-time access to production and supply data, could have prevented the situation through better planning and coordination and that the current crisis reflects “a failure to protect the industry from foreseeable risks.”

Rojas and Abelita recalled that at a July 7 consultative meeting, industry groups had urged the SRA to limit imports to 150,000 metric tons and to consult stakeholders on any additional volume.

They stressed that the agency must go beyond explanations and present concrete actions to stabilize prices and safeguard the industry.