By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Various stakeholders from the sugar industry have banded together and urged the public to vote for senators who support the industry.

The group, Tatak Kalamay, said they seek to collectively address various challenges to the industry that have arisen over the last couple of years, such as high fructose corn syrup, the sugar-sweetened beverage tax, and the proposal to liberalize the sugar industry.

Confederation of Sugar Producers spokesperson Raymond Montinola said the sugar industry is facing a threat, which could spell its death and sink the nation’s economy.

He added, it will also negatively impact the country’s effort to achieve food self-sufficiency.

Sugar Regulatory Administration Board Member Atty. Emilio ‘Dino’ Yulo III, meanwhile, called sugar the “blood of Negros” and, if the industry is destroyed, the island will follow.

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