The sugar shortage is very real and has been growing consistently for the last few years. But it has become artificial due to manipulation and wrong information. In truth, the real shortage is hard to measure for many reasons.

There are two policy recommendations cited by producers to solve the sugar shortage problem — abolish the SRA export quota policy, and measure import orders based on low and peak seasons rather than lump them in a year.

First is the SRA export quota. Please read a previous column, "Sugar industry decline due to SRA syndicate." There is always a shortage every year, partly due to the export policy to fulfill the US quota. The USDA told the Philippines it will not lose its export privilege even if it does not fulfill the quota. The SRA syndicate insisted on the export policy, because they would earn huge profits from it.

Second is measuring import order. The problem is the time interval of a year in measuring shortage is too long. By the time we order imports based on measured shortage, figures have changed dramatically. So, our import orders do not reflect real shortages. The solution suggested by producers is simple — "calibrated importation," which simply means measure shortage in two tranches, at off-season and milling season.

In the off-season, planters do not harvest or sell, so, supply is down, and enhanced shortage requires more imports. In the peak season, planters harvest and sell, so, supply is large, and imports are not so much needed. By computing import orders separately for off-season and milling season, we have a more accurate estimate of import order based on actual low and high supply, rather than lumping them for the year. Also, we make small mistakes, not big ones.

This way, higher imports during the off-season ensure against shortage, which benefit farmers most affected by imports, as prices do not soar. And lower imports during the milling season ensure steady supply from harvests, which benefit both producers and consumers. In other words, adjusting import orders to actual low and high supply is the secret to solving the shortage problem.

Coca-Cola, a big industrial consumer of sugar, was rumored to have plans to move to another country because of shortages here, but reportedly decided to stay, realizing perhaps the artificial shortages were now being corrected.