Believing local sugar production has improved, the Department of Agriculture is maintaining its ban on sugar imports until December 2026. The move aims to prioritize domestically produced sugar and stabilize the market. The agency stated that a longer moratorium is necessary based on the current outlook for production and demand.
In a statement on Monday, the Department of Agriculture (DA) announced it is extending the ban on sugar imports until December 2026, beyond the current crop year's end in September. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., who chairs the Sugar Board of the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), emphasized the need for prolonged protection for local producers amid improving supply conditions.
"The ban on sugar importation will remain in place until December next year – not September, when the current crop year ends – extending protection for local producers amid improving supply conditions," the DA stated.
The SRA will intensify monitoring of refinery operations to maintain accurate inventories of standard and premium-grade refined sugar, aiming to prevent supply distortions and speculative pricing.
In October 2025, Tiu Laurel and SRA Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona clarified that there was no discussion of an importation program for the 2025-2026 crop year until significant milling is completed, firm production figures are obtained, and any imports are classified only as C or reserve sugar.
Domestic sugar production reached 2.015 million metric tons as of June 2025, up from 1.922 million metric tons in the previous crop year. Additionally, sugarcane planting area expanded from 380,000 hectares in 2022 to 409,000 hectares this year.
Meanwhile, the DA and SRA are finalizing a long-delayed regulatory framework for molasses imports. Under the proposed rules, molasses users must first purchase and withdraw locally produced molasses, with imports allowed only afterward based on a predetermined ratio and subject to SRA approval.
