The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) may revise its initial projection of 1.85 million metric tons (MT) for local production during the crop year 2023-2024 to 1.75 million MT, attributing the potential decrease to the impact of El Niño.
Pablo Azcona, SRA administrator, conveyed in a briefing on Monday that El Niño might lead to a 10 to 15 percent reduction in sugar output.
“Upon conducting a review, we observed a decline. The official estimate will be released soon, but based on preliminary assessments from both the SRA and millers, the figure is now around 1.75 million MT,” Azcona stated.
The SRA has requested millers to assess their respective milling districts and confirm the remaining volume of sugarcane standing crops, especially after reaching the 1 million MT milling mark on January 15. Azcona mentioned that milling may conclude soon, with certain districts, initially estimated to produce 390,000 MT of sugar, reporting a current yield of 312,000 MT.
While the SRA noted an increase in production from September 1 to December 31 of the previous year, it clarified that this was primarily due to the ease of harvest and not an improvement in yield per hectare. In October, the United States Department of Agriculture revised its projected raw sugar production in the Philippines for the current crop year, reducing it by 5 percent to 1.8 million MT from the earlier forecast of 1.9 million MT. The actual sugar production in the Philippines for the preceding crop year stood at 1.79 million MT.
