Manila: The moratorium on molasses imports in the Philippines, earlier scheduled to end this year, will now remain in place until March 2026 following a decision by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), reports Philstar Global.
The government first issued the order in September to stop prices from dropping further. A 21 percent rise in local production during the last milling season, along with continued imports, pushed molasses prices down by almost half, falling to below ₱10,000 per metric ton (MT) in early November.
In his recommendation to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., SRA administrator Pablo Luis Azcona said the extension was needed because local stocks stood at roughly 250,000 MT, which he described as adequate for national consumption. He also reported that milling operations on Negros Island, which began on October 1, had already generated nearly 84,000 MT of molasses by November 9.
Azcona said the extended suspension is intended to stabilize prices and ease pressure on millers’ storage tanks.
The Philippine Sugar Millers Association, Inc. (PSMA), which represents around 70 percent of the country’s sugarcane milling capacity, has also supported the decision. PSMA executive director Jesus Barrera said the initial moratorium period was too short and that extending it is “important to help bring the market back to balance.”
