The drop in domestic sugar prices was caused by excessive supply due to over-importation and policy decisions and not legislative oversight, Negros Occidental Rep. Javier Miguel Benitez on Friday said.
Benitez issued the statement following posts claiming a congressional hearing triggered the decline in sugar prices.
He branded the allegations “baseless and irresponsible,” noting that the accusations allegedly originated from within the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA).
“Rather than answer for the oversupply it authorized, the SRA would rather point the finger at the institution that chose to investigate it,” he said.
The lawmaker said sugar prices are determined by supply and demand, not congressional hearings.
He cited data showing that at the start of the October 2025 milling season, total physical sugar inventory reached 902,082 metric tons, a 44 percent increase from the previous year, while carry-over stocks stood at 738,633 metric tons, nearly double the ideal buffer level.
He said these conditions reflected an excessive supply already in the market due to over-importation.
Benitez also pointed to Sugar Order 8, which authorized the importation of 424,000 metric tons of refined sugar scheduled to arrive between July and November 2025, coinciding with the opening of domestic milling.
Negros sugar leaders, he said, had recommended the importation of only 150,000 metric tons.
He said the timing and volume of imports contributed to the sharp drop in farm-gate prices, which fell to between P2,000 and P2,200 per 50-kilo bag by January 2026, below production costs.
Benitez said the hearings conducted in aid of legislation helped build the basis for the Department of Agriculture’s extension of the sugar import ban through December 2026, describing the moratorium as vital protection for local producers.
