30/09/2026
Salamat gid Negros Daily Bulletin 🇵🇭🙏✊️
SRA Urged to Adopt a 100% "B" or Domestic Sugar Classification
NACUSIP TUCP and ARB Council say call
is "grounded on the urgent need to protect locally produced sugar, ensure price stability, and safeguard the livelihoods of workers, farmers, and agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) who collectively produce more than 80% of the country’s sugar output"
Calling for the 100% “B” (Domestic) Sugar Classification for Crop Year 2026–2027 To Protect Locally Produced Sugar and Safeguard the Livelihoods of Workers, Farmers, and Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries
I. Introduction
The National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines (NACUSIP TUCP) and the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Council (ARB Council) respectfully submit this position paper to the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) to strongly support the adoption of a 100% “B” or Domestic Market Sugar classification at the start of Crop Year 2026–2027.
This position is grounded on the urgent need to protect locally produced sugar, ensure price stability, and safeguard the livelihoods of workers, farmers, and agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) who collectively produce more than 80% of the country’s sugar output.
II. Policy Context and Industry Realities
1. Projected Production Decline Due to RSSI Infestation and Weather Disruptions
The SRA’s own projections estimate raw sugar production for Crop Year 2026–2027 at 1.662 million metric tons, with a high probability of further decline due to:
a. The continuing Red Stripe Soft Scale Insect (RSSI) infestation affecting cane quality and yield;
b. Unfavorable weather patterns, including prolonged dry spells and erratic rainfall;
c. Reduced farm productivity in ARB managed lands due to limited access to inputs and financing.
These conditions create a tight supply outlook that requires immediate protective measures.
2. Domestic Demand Exceeds Projected Production
Estimated domestic withdrawals for the same crop year stand at 2.0 million metric tons, significantly higher than projected production. This gap underscores the need to prioritize domestic supply and prevent market destabilization.
3. Workers and ARBs Bear the Brunt of Market Volatility
Sugar workers, mill employees, small farmers, and agrarian reform beneficiaries remain the most vulnerable to:
a. Depressed mill gate prices caused by over-importation;
b. Reduced farmgate income due to market oversupply;
c. Job insecurity in mills and plantations when production slows;
d. Rising production costs that are not matched by fair and stable sugar prices.
A 100% “B” classification is therefore a labor protective and farmer protective measure.
III. Rationale for a 100% “B” Classification
a. Ensures Adequate Domestic Supply and Prevents Price Manipulation
Allocating all locally produced sugar to the domestic market prevents artificial shortages that trigger unnecessary importation, protects consumers from price spikes caused by speculative behavior and stabilizes millgate prices at levels that sustain farm operations and worker wages.
b. Strengthens National Food Security
Sugar is a strategic commodity. Ensuring domestic availability is essential to food manufacturing, beverage industries, retail markets and rural economies dependent on sugar production.
A 100% “B” classification aligns with national food security objectives.
c. Protects the Livelihoods of Workers and ARBs
The sugar industry directly supports over 700,000 workers, including mill employees, cane cutters, and transport workers, hundreds of thousands of ARBs who rely on sugarcane farming for household income, and rural communities whose economies revolve around milling operations.
A stable domestic market ensures predictable income, continuous employment, and sustained rural development.
d. Prevents Premature or Excessive Importation
Historically, premature importation has depressed local prices, undermined farmer confidence, disrupted milling operations and reduced the ability of ARBs to reinvest in their farms and continue farming sugarcane.
A 100% “B” classification sends a clear signal that local production must be prioritized before any importation is considered.
IV. Alignment with SRA’s Mandate
Executive Order No. 18 mandates the SRA to maintain a balanced relationship between production and demand, stabilize prices at levels profitable to producers and fair to consumers and protect the domestic sugar market.
A 100% “B” classification is fully consistent with this mandate, especially under conditions of projected production shortfall.
V. Call to Action
In view of the foregoing, NACUSIP TUCP and the ARB Council formally call on the Sugar Regulatory Administration to:
1. Adopt a 100% “B” or Domestic Sugar classification at the start of Crop Year 2026–2027;
2. Implement strict monitoring of production trends and withdrawals to prevent market manipulation;
3. Ensure transparency and inclusive consultations in any future adjustments to sugar allocations;
4. Avoid linking exports to import rights or replenishment ratios, so that export does not become a channel for new imports.
5. Prioritize local producers before considering any importation program;
6. Engage workers and ARB representatives in all policy consultations affecting sugar supply and pricing.
VI. Conclusion
The 100% “B” classification is a just, necessary, timely, and protective measure that upholds the welfare of workers, farmers, and agrarian reform beneficiaries. It ensures domestic supply stability, strengthens rural economies, and fulfills the SRA’s mandate to maintain fair and profitable market conditions.
The NACUSIP TUCP and the ARB Council stand ready to collaborate with the SRA, millers, planters, and government agencies to ensure the successful implementation of this policy for the benefit of the entire sugar industry.
Submitted by:
ROLAND C. DE LA CRUZ
National President, National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines (NACUSIP)
President, UNI Global Union - Philippine Liaison Council (UNI-PLC)
Vice President, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).
