Amid issues on sugar shortage, the Department of Agriculture In Davao Region (DA-11) assured Thursday that the area has a sufficient supply of the commodity.

In an interview, DA-11 Director Abel James Monteagudo said the region’s sugarcane areas have noted an increase in supply.

Based on DA-11 data, the region’s production area for sugarcane has been increasing in the last two years, or 8,740 hectares in 2020 and 8,767 hectares in 2021.

“Yes, we have enough supply in the market. As to the price, if the supply is low, the prices would be affected, but so far, Davao Region is still good,” Monteagudo said.

Data by the Philippine Statistics Authority also showed that Region 11 is one of the producers of sugar in the country with a 1.15 percent national contribution.

The volume of production in 2020 stood at 275,021 metric tons (MT) while 301,596 MT or 9.66 percent were noted in 2021.

“We are one of the producers of sugar in the country. Based on the data, our production has increased,” Monteagudo said. (PNA)