sweet and sour
The right way to protect SA’s sugar industry
After a spike in sugar imports and despite higher import tariffs, local producers argue the correct way to protect the industry must be based on the cost of production and not the selling price
The decision by SA’s International Trade Administration Commission (Itac) to raise sugar import duties by 20% does not go far enough to protect local producers from the surge in sugar imports over the past two years, says the SA Sugar Association (Sasa). Department of trade & industry (DTI) minister Rob Davies last week endorsed Itac’s recommendation for a rise in sugar import duties from $566 to $680 a ton. Sasa applied to Itac in February for it to be increased to $856 a ton. Sasa says cheaper sugar imports displace the local product and have accelerated the industry’s decline. It says the current protection is less than the cost of producing sugar, making it impossible for local producers to compete with cheaper imports. Import duties have to be in line with the cost of production to be effective, it adds. According to Sasa, SA has 20,161 registered growers who produce about 20Mt of sugar cane each season, which is processed into about 2.2Mt of raw sugar in 14 sugar mills. Sugar ...
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