Sugar output suffers big drop due to bad weather

Local sugar production has suffered a double-digit drop for the crop year 2008-2009 due to typhoons that ravaged plantations during the period, the government said Friday. According to Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) chief Rafael Coscolluela, sugar production dropped by 15 percent to 2.09 million metric tons (MT) from 2.4 million MT in 2007 and 2008 crop year.

Coscolluela said Panay Island suffered the biggest fall at 32 percent among the sugar-producing regions, followed by Negros Occi­dental at 12 percent.

“Panay suffered the most with 32-percent drop in production, maybe because of Typhoon Frank,” Coscolluela said.

The rest of the country also posted double-digit drops, led by Visayas at 29 percent while Luzon and Mindanao both posted 13-percent decrease in production.

Although sugar production decreased, Coscolluela said demand for raw and refined sugar rose by 12 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

Despite the higher withdrawals, sugarcane farmers are not earning well because millgate or farmgate prices are not rising apace with production cost, The SRA official said.

Studies have shown that millgate or farmgate prices remained constant over the past 10 years,” he said.

Currently, millgate price of raw sugar is P1,200 per bag, while retail price of refined sugar is P38 per kilo.

Coscolluela added that most sugar cane farmers who own land with an area of five hectares or less can only earn P50,000 to P75,000 every cropping period.

Because of this, some sugarcane farmers in Bukidnon have shifted to other crops like pineapple due to bigger income they can earn from these, the SRA official said, adding that 10,000 hectares of sugar land had been converted into pineapple farms.

Coscolluela said the industry is hoping that local prices will improve to a level that is more viable for sugarcane farmers.

The Philippines exports sugar to the US, Japan, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Vietnam and Indonesia. –Ira Karen Apanay, Manila Times