TUCP urges Marcos to adopt CONFED sugar proposals

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD CITY — The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) appealed to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. to adopt solutions proposed by the Confederation of Sugar Producers Association Inc. (CONFED) as sugar prices fall and farmers warn of an oversupply in the domestic market.

In a Sunday statement, TUCP expressed support for CONFED’s proposals backed by major industry stakeholders, including the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters (NFSP) and the National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines (NACUSIP-TUCP).

“Mr. President, our sugar industry is collapsing as price, yield, and demand for domestic sugar continue to drop,” said TUCP Party-list Representative and House deputy speaker Raymond Democrito C. Mendoza.

Mendoza said refineries are operating below capacity, and millers, farmers, planters, and workers are being forced to work fewer days and earn less, pushing communities deeper into economic distress.

The TUCP and a CONFED-led coalition are pressing for a government-financed domestic sugar buying program to stabilize prices, the reclassification of remaining imported refined sugar into “C” or reserve sugar, and the immediate convening of the National Biofuels Board to address distortions in the molasses market.

They are also calling for an evidence-based and transparent sugar importation policy and the creation of a technical working group with broad stakeholder representation to operationalize the buying program.

Mendoza said the President should meet industry stakeholders before any new SRA program or order is issued, arguing that only genuine consultation can produce a comprehensive policy that strengthens domestic production and curbs what he described as “destructive over-importation.”

“We urge the President to lead from the front and meet with sugar industry stakeholders before any new program or order is issued by the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA),” Mendoza said.

“Only through genuine consultation can we ensure that farmers, planters, and workers are fully represented and that the country finally adopts a comprehensive sugar policy that strengthens domestic production and moves us away from destructive over-importation,” he added.

Sugar farmers from Panay Island echoed the call as they reported a sharp decline in millgate prices since the start of milling.

In a letter addressed to the President through the Sugar Board, the Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers (PANAYFED) said that since milling began in the third week of October, prices dropped from PHP 2,480 to PHP 2,150 per 50-kilo bag, which the group said is now below production cost.

Citing the SRA’s Sugar Supply and Demand Report dated Dec. 14, 2025, PANAYFED said raw sugar stocks stand at 413,715 metric tons and refined sugar stocks total 414,344 metric tons, with most refined stocks described as imported.

PANAYFED said about 368,000 metric tons of the refined sugar inventory consists of imports, including roughly 202,000 metric tons carried over from crop year 2022–2023 and 166,000 metric tons tied to Sugar Order No. 8 for crop year 2024–2025.

“This oversupply of sugar in the domestic market is the direct cause of low prices,” PANAYFED said.

The group warned that without action to address the glut, farmers should not expect a price recovery.

PANAYFED also rejected the SRA’s proposed Sugar Order No. 2 involving an export-import scheme, saying additional importation “under any form” would worsen a problem it attributes to excessive imports.

PANAYFED President Danilo A. Abelita said the federation supports the five measures proposed by CONFED to arrest the decline in sugar and molasses prices and urged the President to act quickly to assist sugar farmers and their families.

The labor and farmer groups said decisive leadership and stakeholder-driven policies are needed to stabilize the industry, protect livelihoods, and restore confidence in the country’s sugar policy.

In the Philippines, sugar policy is typically administered through the SRA, which manages supply through production allocations and sugar orders, while industry groups have long argued that import timing and volume can sharply affect domestic prices, especially in key producing regions such as Negros and Panay.