Solon: Sugar sector lost P7B, more seen if overimportations go unchecked

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s sugar industry has already lost P7.28 billion due to overimportation — and may even lose up to P20 billion by June 2026 if the situation is not addressed, Negros Occidental Rep. Javi Benitez warned.

Benitez in his privilege speech on Wednesday said that Negros sugar industry players recommended the the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) the importation of 150,000 metric tons (MT) of sugar, but the agency brought in 424,000 MT — leading to oversupply.

This oversupply, Benitez said, had pushed the price of cane and molasses down by 38 percent and 56 percent, respectively.

“The Negros sugar leaders had recommended only 150,000 metric tons, the surplus flooded the market at the worst possible time, when our farmers were bringing their cane to mill.  A stable farmgate price sits between P2,500 and P2,800 per 50 kilo(gram) bag.  By January 2026, millgate prices had collapsed to P2,000 to P2,200 — a 38 percent drop,” he stressed.

“(This is) well below the P2,500 cost of production.  Molasses (price) fell by 56 percent, from P17,000 to P7,500 per ton.  Between October and December 2025, the industry lost P7.28 billion.  If nothing changes, Mr. Speaker, losses will exceed P20 billion by June 2026,” he added.

Benitez explained that the high importation figures came just before the local milling season opened last October 2025.  As a result, the country’s sugar inventory was at 902,082 metric tons (MT), which he said “is a 44 percent increase over the previous year.”

The high increase, he said, was due to a carry-over stock of 738,633 MT of sugar, higher than the ideal buffer of 400,000 MT.  However, Benitez noted that SRA’s Sugar Order No. 8 “authorized the importation of 424,000 metric tons of sugar, with arrival scheduled between July and November 2025 right on top of the opening months of domestic milling.”

“So what drove these sugar prices down?  Sugar is a physical commodity. Its price moves on supply and demand, on the actual volume of sugar sitting in warehouses against what is being consumed,” he noted.

Benitez delivered the privilege speech after he questioned why the SRA is accusing the House of Representatives hearing as the reason behind the low sugar costs in the country.

Benitez did not name who among SRA’s officials made the allegations, but he said that the executive accused the chamber through a group chat on the messaging app Viber.

“Mr. Speaker, it has come to our attention that screenshots of messages have circulated online, blaming the House of Representatives for the decline in sugar prices.  What makes this worse is that the person behind this claims appears to be an SRA official,” he said.

“One such message reads […] ‘Sorry to say, but this was the result of yesterday’s congressional hearing, Feb. 6. The hearing was announced by Congress and Senate, SRA asked to delay it after milling, after that we saw a stop in the upswing, and the next was 10 down’,” he added.

It is unclear how the House hearing would influence prices, but Benitez said that instead of answering issues related to the low sugar prices, SRA chose to spread “baseless and irresponsible” allegations.

The lawmaker also said that the allegations are not just wrong, but improper since SRA should be the one rectifying its policies, particularly on sugar importation, which he believes pushed supplies up and prices down.

“Mr. Speaker, this is not just wrong. It is baseless and irresponsible, and it is deeply troubling that the accusation appears to come from within the very agency whose own policy created this crisis.  Rather than answer for the oversupply it authorized, the SRA would rather point the finger at the institution that chose to investigate it,” he said.

Benitez maintained that “traders stopped purchasing because warehouses were already full,” and not because of the information provided by the House.

In a follow-up message, INQUIRER asked Benitez as to how he got hold of the messages from the official.  In response, the lawmaker said the SRA official made the remarks in a group chat that includes over 270 sugar industry stakeholders.

“It was posted by an SRA official in a Viber group chat with sugar industry stakeholders of 271 members.  Seems public and official enough,” he said in a text message.

In October 2025, several lawmakers from the Negros Island Region (NIR) called on the SRA to take immediate action to address the sharp decline in sugar prices, which left farmers struggling to recover their production costs.

At least 10 representatives said the drop in sugar prices threatened rural livelihoods, food security, and social stability in the NIR.

READ: Sharp drop in sugar prices alarms Negros lawmakers

By January 2026, it was reported that prices of sugar and molasses had gradually risen, bringing much-needed relief to farmers, particularly in Negros Occidental.

The increase in prices prompted Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) board member David Sanson to urge greater unity among planters and federations to sustain the gains through long-term solutions for the industry.

READ: Rising sugar, molasses prices bring relief to farmers

In a statement, Sanson said sugar prices rose to P2,300–P2,400 per 50-kilogram bag, while molasses surpassed P9,000 per ton after remaining at P2,100–P2,200 for more than three months.

He noted that northern mills have already posted significant increases and expressed hope that southern mills would soon follow.

“We are grateful that sugar and molasses prices have gone up since last week. This is a welcome relief for our farmers,” Sanson said. /jpv