Sugar selling high at P54/kilo in Manila market

Amid government efforts to stabilize the supply of the commodity, sugar continued to sell at P54/kilo in a market in Manila. Radio dzBB's Carlo Mateo reported on Thursday sugar was sold at P54 per kilo at the Trabajo Public Market in Manila's Sampaloc district. The report quoted vendors as saying they could not sell sugar at P52 per kilo because they were buying the commodity from their suppliers at P52.25. The Department of Agriculture was set to call players in the sugar industry to a meeting this Thursday to tackle a possible supply shortage. Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said last Tuesday the meeting also aims to ensure transparency in the mechanism for importing sugar, if there is a need for it. "Bago tayo magbigay ng permiso sa pag-angkat gusto natin makausap ang players sa commodity na yan. May meeting sa Huwebes sa millers, gusto ko makaharap ang magsasaka at dealers nito para may transparency. Wala tayong tinatago at gusto natin alam ng lahat," Alcala said in an interview on dzBB radio last Tuesday. (Before we give permission to parties to import sugar, we want to talk to the players in the industry. I have scheduled a meeting on Thursday with the farmers and dealers to ensure transparency. We want everyone concerned to now what we are planning to do.) He allayed fears of a possible shortage of sugar products due to the effect of the El Niño weather phenomenon on the country’s sugar plantations. Alcala particularly downplayed speculations that prices of sugar may shoot up to P70 per kilo. "Di naman, kasi kung ito ay agarang magagawa ng paraan e di ito mangyayari. Ito nga ay ginagawa natin ng paraan (That will not happen. We are trying to find a solution to it this early)," he said in a separate interview on dwIZ radio. — LBG, GMANews.TV