THE Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) rejected claims of an oversupply of sugar, which has been blamed for a decline in millgate prices.
“For both raw and refined sugar, we are currently 35-37% below the levels recorded last year,” SRA Administrator Pablo Luis S. Azcona said in a statement.
The Sugar Council, a confederation of three sugar associations, has said demand for domestically milled sugar has weakened due to the entry of imports and the increased use of artificial sweeteners by the beverage industry.
The SRA has authorized imports of 240,000 metric tons (MT) of refined sugar, citing the need to shore up supply before the start of the 2024-2025 milling season.
According to the SRA, as of Oct. 20, raw sugar stocks amounted to 148,255 MT, while refined sugar inventory amounted to 323,983 MT.
Mr. Azcona added that inventories have remained at “proper levels, maintaining the needed buffers.”
In a joint statement last week, the Department of Agriculture and the SRA said they intended to postpone imports of refined sugar until May or June next year with sugar inventories expected to remain stable.
“As of Nov. 10, 2024, our production of sugar is down by 61%, and we have prepared for this with the proper buffer supply,” he said.
The regulator earlier estimated that raw sugar production during the current crop year would decline 7.2% from a year earlier due to crop damage sustained during the dry conditions brought about by El Niño.
The SRA said the crop damage will outweigh the increase in the area planted to sugar to 389,461 hectares, from 388,378 hectares in the previous crop year. — Adrian H. Halili