By JEN BAYLON

Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson is hopeful that sugar producers in the province could recover from the effects of the ongoing El Niño phenomenon on their crops.

This, after the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) reported that the drought damage to sugar and molasses in Western Visayas was at P215,700,114, with Negros Occidental recording P200,178,856 in losses.

The drought has affected 5,753 hectares of sugarcane fields in the region, with 4,705 hectares located in the province.

The damages to sugarcane and molasses were P191 million and P24 million, respectively.

Lacson, in an interview yesterday, said the rains could help minimize the damage to sugarcane.

“The sugar crop is a very sturdy crop. If the rain is to come as predicted by Pagasa, I think [it will] minimize the damage,” he said.

“But definitely, [for] next year’s crop, the output will be lower than what we had this year,” he added.

Despite the challenges faced by the sugar industry in the province, Lacson remains hopeful that recovery is possible in the next crop year.

“As I said, sugar is the primary agricultural product in Negros Occidental. We can expect less purchasing power by the consumers here,” Lacson said.

“But hoping that when everything normalizes, we can again recover in the next crop year. Not this coming crop year but the next crop year,” he added.

Earlier, the SRA reported that Negros Occidental was expecting a 30 percent drop in its standing sugarcane crop output amid the prevailing El Niño, on the assumption that the drought would last beyond May.

The SRA’s projected sugar production for crop year 2023-2024 was 1.85 million metric tons./JB, WDJ