The Philippines pushed back its sugar importation plans until mid-2025 to better assess domestic supply after the current crop year’s final harvest.
The decision was made during a meeting between Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. and Sugar Regulatory Authority (SRA) administrator Pablo Luis Azcona on Nov. 7, 2024.
Tiu Laurel said there is no immediate need for additional imports as both raw and refined sugar supplies are stable and sufficient to meet anticipated demand.
“Given the current situation, Administrator Azcona and I agreed that a decision on sugar importation could be delayed until after May, when the current harvest season ends,” he said, noting that the current crop year ends in August 2025.
“Our supplies of both raw and refined sugar are stable, and the harvest season has just begun, so Sec. Laurel and I agree to delay the import decision until after the harvest, around May,” Azcona said.
Azcona said the current harvest season started slowly, with total cane volume reaching only a third of the amount harvested at this time last year.
He attributed this to lower sugar content per ton of cane due to El Niño.
“Farmers had to delay their harvests to allow the cane to mature further and increase sugar content,” Azcona said.
Prolonged dry spells from El Niño caused physiological immaturity in the cane, reducing sugar content per ton by 16 percent, which limited output despite an increase in planting areas.
SRA data showed that the area planted with sugar cane rose slightly this year to 389,461 hectares from 388,378 hectares in the previous crop year.
The SRA estimates this year’s sugar production at 1.782 million metric tons, down by 7.2 percent from last year’s.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) forecasts a 3.6-percent drop in Philippine raw sugar production, with output falling to 1.85 million metric tons from 1.92 million MT.
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