Ministry of Agriculture clarifies potential sugar price changes

A late October Cabinet release sparked concern among consumers and industry stakeholders after it indicated the government would remove price controls on retail-packaged sugar. In response, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has clarified that while the price of packaged sugar may fluctuate, the wholesale industrial price will remain regulated.
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Honourable Jose Mai, explained that only packaged sugar is affected, as packaging carries an added cost and there is competition in that segment. “The packaged sugar has no control price because packaging has a cost and there is competition,” Mai noted. “The wholesale price, however, which is the industrial price, has a price control, and stakeholders should not go above a certain amount.”
Chairman of the Sugar Industry Control Board, Marco Osorio, acknowledged the potential burden on consumers if packaged sugar prices rise but said cane farmers have been facing mounting pressures, including higher production costs, climate impacts, and the Fusarium disease affecting sugar cane. According to Osorio, the Cabinet’s decision is expected to provide farmers with some financial relief.
In July, leaders of the four sugarcane producers’ associations warned that the industry was in an unprecedented financial crisis. They recommended increasing the price of molasses, allocating a portion of any sugar price increase to a Cane Sustainability Fund, and raising tariffs on bagasse-generated electricity to assist with sector resilience. These proposals were reportedly submitted to the Prime Minister, the Honourable John Briceño, the Minister, the Honourable Mai, and the Minister of State, the Honourable Dr. Osmond Martinez. No update has since been released.
In San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, local groceries currently sell two-pound packs of brown sugar for about $2, while white sugar retails for approximately $1.50 per pound. Any change in retail sugar pricing would not only affect households but could also impact cafés, bakeries, and other establishments that rely on sugar for beverages and pastries.