Philippines tightens rules on sugar-based bioethanol imports to safeguard domestic sugar industry
The Philippines’ sugar industry welcomed new SRA rules requiring National Biofuels Board approval for imported sugar-based ethanol feedstocks, protecting domestic producers. Meanwhile, proposals to allow corn ethanol and increase gasoline blending to E20 remain under review, balancing farmer, livestock and energy security interests.
The United Sugar Producers’ Federation of the Philippines (Unifed) has welcomed a recent move by the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), saying it closes a regulatory gap that could have allowed imports of sugar-derived feedstocks for bioethanol production without approval from the National Biofuels Board (NBB).
Unifed president Manuel Lamata said the clarification was important to protect the domestic sugar industry from imported raw materials that could potentially replace locally produced sugarcane, molasses and other sugar-based inputs, Malaya Business Insight reported.
According to Lamata, the earlier provision created a risk for local producers and could have significantly affected the industry if left unchanged.
Last week, the SRA issued Sugar Order No. 4 for Crop Year 2025–2026, clarifying that imports of sugar-derived feedstocks intended for bioethanol production will only be permitted with authorisation from the National Biofuels Board.
The order applies to imported sugar-related inputs including molasses, sugar, sugarcane, sugar syrup and other products derived from sugar and sugarcane.
The SRA said the clarification became necessary after a previous regulation issued during Crop Year 2008–2009 had been interpreted as allowing the agency to approve the entry of such products.
Lamata noted that industry participants had questioned why earlier amendments to Sugar Order No. 14 of Crop Year 2008–2009 did not address Section 6, which permitted imports of sugarcane- and sugar-derived materials for ethanol production.
He argued that the provision had raised concerns even at a time when the country’s ethanol industry was still in its early stages and domestic production capacity was sufficient to meet demand for molasses and related feedstocks.
The clarification comes as the Philippine government continues to examine a separate proposal to amend Joint Administrative Order No. 2008-1 to include corn as an additional approved feedstock for bioethanol production alongside sugarcane and molasses.
The Department of Agriculture has said the proposal remains under review and would require final approval from the National Biofuels Board.
Supporters of the amendment believe corn-based ethanol could offer farmers an additional source of income during periods of lower agricultural returns.
They cited a study by the University of the Philippines Los Baños, which proposed using seasonal surpluses of yellow corn for ethanol production, particularly during the wet season when drying facilities are limited and market prices tend to weaken.
However, the proposal has drawn concerns from the livestock and poultry sectors, which pointed out that the country currently produces only 62.7 per cent of its yellow corn requirements and that yellow corn remains a major ingredient in animal feed production.
Meanwhile, the Department of Energy has said increasing bioethanol blending levels to Ethanol 20 — consisting of 20 per cent bioethanol and 80 per cent gasoline — could lower fuel prices by as much as P5 per litre compared with the current 10 per cent blend.
The department also said greater use of locally produced ethanol could strengthen energy security by reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels.
To Read more about Sugar Industry continue reading Agriinsite.com
Source : ChiniMandi
