The United Sugar Producers Federation (Unifed) seeks the intervention of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) amid the huge drop in milling prices of sugar.

“Somebody is playing with the market, and an immediate intervention to curb the downtrend in sugar prices is very much needed,” Unifed president Manuel Lamata said in a statement.

“We urge the DA and SRA to intervene as soon as possible and to unmask the culprits who are playing us,” he said, adding that the drop in milling prices averaged P100 in every 50-kilogram bag of sugar.

Mill prices of sugar averaged at P2,500 per bag last Thursday, November 28, at a time when farmers hope that prices will be at P2,800 per bag to make a little profit.

Lamata said Unifed has been suspecting that “artificial pricing is caused by traders who want to make a big profit at the expense of sugar farmers, and they should be exposed.”

He added that while mill prices are dropping, retail prices remain constant and will probably even hike due to the holidays, which means more profit for them.

“I am also rallying the farmers to hold on to their sugar until prices stabilize,” Lamata said.

He added that while he knows this is easier said than done, especially for small farmers who are dependent on their weekly trade, “we may all need to tighten our belts so we will not be abused by these unscrupulous traders.”

Since the start of the milling season, prices have been erratically dipping and increasing, contrary to the supply and demand figures, which raised suspicions that somebody is profiting from recent events.

“We need them to prop up sugar prices at a comfortable level to prevent further losses, especially now when there is also the issue of sugar purity that has gone down due to the long drought,” Lamata said.

If the government comes in and starts buying our sugar, he said, they can sell the commodity directly to the consumers “until prices stabilize.”

“We fear that this continued downtrend will have a severe impact on our small farmers, which comprise more than 80 percent of the industry’s producers, who are looking forward to a better holiday season, especially with the increase in production inputs due to the long drought,” he said./WDJ