Senate Resolution No. 1014 was introduced earlier this week, which opposes the proposed liberalization of the sugar industry.

Senators Juan Edgardo ‘Sonny’ Angara, Nancy Binay, JV Ejercito, Sherwin Gatchalian, Richard Gordon, Loren Legarda, Aquilino ‘Koko’ Pimentel III, Joel Villanueva, Cynthia Villar, and Juan Miguel Zubiri were signed on to the legislation.

The resolution cited recent statements by economic managers on the proposal, which they says has stirred fear among stakeholders in the sugar industry.

The senators claimed, due to Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) policies allowing food exporters to openly import sugar without duties as long as their products are exported and not sold locally, liberalization, or deregulation, of the sugar industry will not impact competition for exporters of food products that utilize sugar.

They speculate deregulation would be “disastrous” for domestic sugar production, which the resolution claims contributes an estimated P96 billion to the gross domestic product and would affect almost five million individuals.

The resolution also cites the Sugar Industry Development Act, which was enacted for the state to “promote the competitiveness of the sugarcane industry and maximize the utilization of sugarcane resources.”

In response to the senate resolution, SRA board member, Atty. Emilio ‘Dino’ Yulo III, offered his appreciation for the development.

“This senate resolution gives us a glimmer of hope,” he said.

Yulo added, he hopes economic managers will also visit the fields in order to empathize with small farmers.

According to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), despite 2018 fourth quarter agriculture numbers up, sugarcane production was in decline.

Based on their 4Q report, agriculture overall, which includes crops, livestock, poultry, and fisheries, saw an increase of 1.8 percent; crops, in particular, saw a marginal 0.25 percent increase.

However, the report noted sugarcane production saw a 2.22 percent drop, noting a reduction in areas harvested in the Western Visayas./DGB, WDJ