The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) announced that delaying the sugar milling season to September could potentially generate an additional income of P700 million for sugarcane farmers. SRA acting administrator Pablo Luis Azcona explained that the decision to start the milling season on September 1 is based on scientific data, weather patterns, and the maturity of the sugarcane crop. Azcona emphasized the importance of respecting the scientific evidence behind the decision, pointing out that August is typically a month of heavy rainfall in the country.
The Sugar Council, composed of planters’ and farmers’ federations, had previously called for an earlier start to the milling season in August, citing concerns that delaying the harvest of overripe ratoon plants until September could negatively impact farmers. However, Azcona argued that last year’s early milling in August resulted in significant income losses for farmers due to low prices at the time.
Azcona presented simulations that showed if the more than 432,000 tons of sugar were milled in September instead of August, farmers could have earned P2.5 billion compared to the P1.8 billion they earned last year. This represents a difference of P700 million and would have benefited around 5,750 small farmer beneficiaries. The milling season this year ended in April, earlier than the traditional May to June period.
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