State Dining Room, Malacañan Palace
May 17, 2023

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. held a meeting with the sugar industry stakeholders where he is hailed by the attendees as the “first President to go out and protect the farmer[s].”

During his discussion at the State Dining Room in Malacañan Palace, the President stressed the need to make the country’s sugar industry competitive in the world market in the future and will prioritize local production. He urged cooperation from the stakeholders as the Administration implements its long-term plan to improve production, particularly moving the milling season from August to September that will result to a 10 percent increase in production.

In a presentation, Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) Acting Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona presented the benefits of moving the milling and harvesting to September that include the following – minimize milling of young canes; better sugar recovery; longer milling period; higher production volume; better factory preparation; and fair opportunity to both the millers and farmers.

President Marcos Jr. said that the government will open the sugar importation market to all traders as the country is set to import between 100,000 to 150,000 MT.

He also gave an opportunity to the stakeholders to raise their concerns and provide suggestions for the improvement of the sugar industry wherein majority cited the identification of idle lands for planting of sugar, empowering small sugar farmers by providing fertilizers, reviving the Philippine Sugar Corporation, and transparency from the government on sugar importation.

The attendees included representatives from the small sugar farmers and block farmers, beneficiaries from the indigenous people (IP), United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED), Luzon Federation of Sugar Producers, Inc. (LUZONFED), Kabankalan-Ilog Planters Association (KABILOG PA), millers and domestic traders.

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