Manila: Farmers’ group UNIFED warns of a potential sugar shortage due to El Niño severely damaging sugarcane plantations in Negros. There is a need for 200,000 metric tons (MT) of sugar to avoid shortage in the country caused due to El Nino, it said.
UNIFED president Manuel Lamata says local production will suffer as many farms struggle to recover from the extreme heat.
“This El NiñThe o is unlike anything I’ve seen before,” Lamata said in a radio interview. “The heat is unbearable, and the sugarcane is drying up to the point where even cows won’t eat it.”
Lamata emphasises the need to import sugar to bridge the supply gap caused by delayed local milling. Farmers must replant sugarcane once the rains arrive, creating a temporary shortage.
“We propose importing 185,000 to 200,000 metric tons of sugar to prevent a shortage,” Lamata explains. “This amount is necessary to avoid impacting farm gate prices when the milling season resumes.”
Lamata urges local governments, particularly in Negros, a major sugar-producing province, to consider cloud seeding to mitigate the drought’s effects on agriculture, a crucial source of income for the region.
