SRA stops HFCS importation as sugar prices soften

Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) temporarily stopped the importation of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) into the country while it investigates on the continuously declining sugar prices.

SRA Administrator Hermenegildo Serafica said over the weekend that during the agency's regular board meeting, the SRA board created a committee to investigate the cause for the decline of prices.

"The board directed the committee to look into the importation and consumption of all forms of sugars. They will also run a check on custom bonded warehouses and food processors’ utilization of sugar,” said Serafica.

In the same meeting, the SRA board also resolved to hold in abeyance the requests of food processors to import sugar until the committee has concluded it's investigation.

This decision came immediately almost after the Sugar Alliance of the Philippines (SAP) appealed to SRA to investigate the effect of HFCS importation on the continued decline of sugar prices.

In a letter addressed to Serafica, SAP requested SRA to hold the approval of the importation of HFCS until such time that the issue is properly investigated.

Right now, sugar prices continue to drop amid rising beverage cost.

This has prompted consumer groups to raise a red flag, saying that the proposed excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) could signal a double whammy to the struggling sugar industry.

Documents from Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) showed that the wholesale price of 50-kilogram bag of sugar declined by a quarter in October this year, while the average retail cost of non-alcoholic drinks jumped 1.3 percent during the same period.