Ethanol versus sugar

I got a text message from my friend Neil asking if ethanol is supported by my other friends Nene Rojas and Jimmy Golez, both sugar cane planters. I forwarded the text to both Nene and Jimmy and got a return call right away.

The point is, is ethanol good for the sugar industry? Yes, it is. But, it's as simple as saying it's good or not. Both Nene and Jimmy did not give me their complete reaction but personally I believe this should be discussed more in-depth.

My other friend Gov. Joseph Marañon also was reported to have recommended the production of ethanol. Good! Anything that helps the country, especially in the face of the rapidly escalating cost of oil, we cling to every straw we can grasp.

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But, let's put things in their proper order. There is today propaganda being waged to promote ethanol. I am not against ethanol. But, let's look at it from the economic point of view.

An amount of sugarcane that can produce one lkg of sugar, that's 50 kilos, gives the sugarcane planter a price of let's say, P1,200. It can even be more.

This same amount of sugarcanes producing one 50-kilo bag can produce ethanol that can earn only an equivalent of P800.

Will the planters send their sugarcanes to an ethanol plant? I have known the planters all these years. No one will. Is there? Please raise your hand.

You can argue, but there is future in ethanol. And the planters will answer, we will plant sugarcanes for ethanol in the future also. Not now.

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It's better to resolve this problem now. If an ethanol plant is put up, get the written commitment of the planters to supply it with canes.

What happens if, after the plant is put up and operational, it will not have enough canes to make the operation viable? Disaster!

Give it to the ethanol people. They are effective in their PR campaign. I hope they do not find me dousing cold water on it. I am jut trying to look at it more realistically. In the end, they might be thankful, especially if it comes out a failure.

I would like to hear the other side. But it does not mean their argument alone. I want to have a list of the sugarcane planters who have committed or will commit in writing that the sugarcanes they produce will be used for producing ethanol.

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To me, the solution is put up an ethanol plant in a place where there is no mill that produces sugar, and all that it will produce is ethanol. Otherwise, no one will send to an ethanol plant.

True, fuel prices are rising. But, figure out, sugar prices are also rising. With a population of 85 million and with a commitment to the U.S. market, we will be short for our consumption, if we are not short already, which explains our importation of sugar, if not by smuggling.

This is the economics of ethanol.

True, Brazil produces ethanol. But, you should know they produce ethanol in a place purposely only for ethanol.

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The constant rains spawned by the many tropical storms have wrought havoc on our foreshore areas. We traveled down south yesterday with assistant provincial engineer Ernie Mapa and his assistant engineer Jay Alpas.

Coming home, we passed by NIA Superintendent engineer Diony Asensio who treated us to luncheon in Bago. We earlier asked the Governor how can our little foreshore area in San Enrique be saved from erosion. And he ordered engineer Mapa to take a look.

Both engineer Mapa and engineer Alpas will make recommendations. This request was not only made by me but together with San Enrique Mayor Jilson Tubillara and Barangay Captain Centilizo.

This year's constant rains have likewise adversely affected rice farms. The other day, together with my farmer neighbor Arthur Uy Chiat, we could only regret we dared risk planting tomatoes and squash on a rainy season.

But taking risks is sometimes interesting though disappointing.

The weather is bad. But the greatest enemy of rice farmers is still the low prices due to heavy importation of rice by NFA.

We can't blame them. They want people to have low prices of rice. But this discourages farmers from planting and producing, especially in the face of an escalating fertilizer and chemical cost.

For reasons of their own, NFA likes it that we import more.

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In every gathering of Rotarians, Jocelyn "Joc-Joc" Bolante's name always comes up. Bolante was last year's treasurer of Rotary International, now languishing in detention cell then in California and now Chicago.

What was regrettable was a statement by one well known Rotarian in Manila who said that Bolante is not yet guilty without any court decision judging him as such.

True! He is not yet guilty. But is he a good Rotarian, considering the code of conduct Rotarians are supposed to live by? What a disservice to Rotary International.

There were other Rotarians who faced criminal suits but, in the end, they got out of Rotary which refused to accept them back.

I recall Dr. Pat Tan years back convinced a Rotarian in our Club to resign because of the talk, his company was involved in pyramiding. And he was the manager.

What is sad was Bolante was not a poor man. He was very well off with successful businesses that he ran. Why he went into and got involved in the fertilizer alleged anomaly is something to wonder at.*

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