SUGAR CONCERNS. Negros Occidental Fifth District Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo (center) with SRA Acting Administrator David John Thaddeus Alba (left) and Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on the sidelines of the 68th Philippine Sugar Technologists Association Convention in Bacolod City in August. On Wednesday (Sept. 21, 2022), Yulo said he welcomes the proposal to include a business sector representative in the SRA Board, but noted that it should be studied carefully.(File photo courtesy of PIO Negros Occidental) BACOLOD CITY - A legislator from Negros Occidental said on Wednesday the proposal of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) to include a business sector representative in the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) Board needs a thorough study. "We need to carefully study whether expanding the membership would be most beneficial to the industry and the stakeholders, including the consumers," Fifth District Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo, a former board member, said in an interview. Although he welcomes the proposal, Yulo, who was the planters' representative in the Sugar Board before he resigned to run for Congress in the May 2022 elections, said it should be examined what particular sector would be most suited to form part of the decision-making body. Along with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is the concurrent agriculture secretary, the Sugar Board is comprised of SRA Acting Administrator David John Thaddeus Alba, as well as board members Pablo Luis Azcona and Ma. Mitzi V. Mangwag, who are the planters' and millers' representatives, respectively. On Tuesday, the PCCI said their recommendation was in support of the call of local food manufacturers and exporters to include a business sector representative in the Sugar Board. In a statement, PCCI Agriculture Committee chair Paul Cuyegkeng said the proposal would "strike a balance between the needs of farmers, millers, and food manufacturers", the majority of which are micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). "We believe that all sectors must be heard. Our local food processors and manufacturers, which are mostly MSMEs, have long been burdened with the high cost of refined sugar and sadly, they are not able to compete with our counterparts in Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), whose sugary-made products are sold way cheaper than ours," he added. (PNA) }