Food processors allowed to tap ‘D’ sugar

MANILA, Philippines - Food processors and ethanol producers may now avail of the world market sugar allocation, the Sugar Regulatory Administration said.

SRA administrator Hermenegildo Serafica said the “D“ world market sugar produced during the current sugar crop year is now available to food processors and manufacturers of sugar-based products for export.

The SRA classifies sugar into “A“ for export to the US, “B“ for domestic consumption, “C“ for reserves, “D“ for export to countries other than the US, “E“ for local food processors and “F“ for ethanol producers.

“It is beneficial to provide readily available sugar to food processors and manufacturers of sugar-based products for export in order to remain competitive in the world market,“ Serafica said.

For the current crop year, which started in September 2017 and ends in August, SRA provided a 10 percent allocation of the “D“ sugar.

SRA previously allowed “D“ sugar to be reclassified as “E“ sugar to be used by the food processors and manufacturers of sugar-based products for export as well as “F“ sugar to be used by accredited ethanol producers.

The agency released the new set of guidelines to maintain an acceptable volume of stocks in domestic warehouses.

The application for verification shall indicate whether it is for export to the world market, for food processors and manufacturers of sugar-based products for export or for accredited ethanol producers.

The “D“ quedans, if not verified with the SRA, shall render the quedans homeless and non-marketable sugar which cannot be withdrawn from the mills unless specifically authorized by the SRA.