There has been a noted shortage of supply of sugar in the domestic market of the Philippines after a poor harvest of for the 2021–22 crop year.
This led to the price increase of the commodity and there has been suspicions of traders taking advantage of the situation through hoarding and/or smuggling.
[5][7] United Sugar Producers Federation (Unifed) President Manuel Lamata, insisted that unspecified traders are engaged in "manipulation and hoarding" and claimed that there is no shortage at all.
[10] After raids conducted in separate locations in August 2022 which yielded 10,700 MT of sugar, the Philippine government concluded that the shortage is "artificial".
Manufacturers as a result may increase prices of their products to compensate in an event of a shift to the more heavier taxed sweetener.
[25] Sebastian cited a July 15 memorandum by Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez when asked why he signed SO 4 in behalf of Marcos.
Sebastian maintained that he signed the order in good faith and conceded that he might have "misread" the intention of Marcos, Rodriguez, and other SRA officials.
[27] Serafica speaking before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee admitted he did not consult the board when he drafted SO 4 itself, though he pursued the order following an SRA online meeting with stakeholders including traders on July 29, 2022.
[29] Marcos appointed David John Thaddeus Alba as acting administrator, and Pablo Luis Azcona and Maria Mitzi Mangwag as board members.
[31][32] He said that around 150,000 MT of sugar could be imported to address the country's needs for the rest of 2022 and projected the current supply to last until October.
[33] In December 2022, the Office of the President (OP) dismissed the case against former officials of the Department of Agriculture and SRA, including Sebastian, Serafica, Beltran, and Valderrama, on grounds that there was no clear evidence that the respondents signed the 300,000 metric tons sugar importation in bad faith.
The OP also noted that former Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez's memorandum dated July 15, 2022 was the source of the miscommunication for the respondents.