Planters call on DA, SRA to address pest infestation in sugar farms

Sugarcane workers harvest cane in Talisay City, Negros Occidental. —RONNIE BALDONADO/CONTRIBUTOR/FILE PHOTO

BACOLOD CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines — The Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations (Confed) is calling on the Department of Agriculture (DA), particularly the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), to immediately implement measures to arrest the surge of red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation in sugar farms.

“Numerous sugar farmers have reported a resurgence of RSSI infestation in their farms. They conduct natural and biological measures to combat its spread, but the infestation persists because the insects simply transfer to adjacent, untreated sugar farms,” Confed president Aurelio Gerardo J. Valderrama Jr. said in a press statement Wednesday, June 3.

“Last crop year, we experienced widespread RSSI infestation in Negros and Panay. We learned that arresting the spread of RSSI cannot be done simply by addressing it at the individual farm-level, because the insects just transfer to other untreated farms. We call on the DA and SRA for large-scale, preemptive measures, such as aerial spraying, to stop the insects and prevent their spread to other cane farms,” Valderrama said.

READ: Over 840 hectares of Negros sugarcane fields hit by pests

News reports citing the SRA disclosed that, as of August 19 last year, almost 3,700 hectares of cane farms had been affected by the RSSI infestation—mostly in Negros Occidental, where 24 local government units were affected.

READ: Pests threaten sugar supply, prompts importation, say growers

“We urge the SRA to move with utmost speed because, as we learned from last crop year’s experience, RSSI spreads exponentially. It grew from just several affected hectares when the SRA reportedly started monitoring in May 2025 to almost 3,700 hectares by August 2025,” Valderrama said.

He explained that RSSI infestation could reduce a cane’s sugar content by as much as 50 percent.

Its effect is disastrous to sugar farmers who continue to struggle with the high costs of fuel and farm inputs amid low millgate sugar prices, Valderrama said. /cb