FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    
June 17, 2013                                                          

 

Members of Illinois Congressional Delegation Support Reformof Costly U.S. Sugar Program

Broad-Based Coalition Applauds Federal Lawmakers for Standing Up for Consumers

 

Washington, DC - The Coalition for Sugar Reform today applauded 10 members of Illinois' Congressional delegation - Sens. Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Reps. Danny Davis (D-IL), Bobby Rush (D-IL), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Dan Lipinski (D-IL), Bill Foster (D-IL), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and Robin Kelly (D-IL) - for cosponsoring the bipartisan Sugar Reform Act (H.R. 693/S. 345) and supporting reform of the costly federal sugar program. The coalition urges Members of Congress to cosponsor the legislation and support the sugar reform floor amendment to the 2013 farm bill.

Over the past four years, the Depression-era program has imposed a $14 billion hidden food tax on American consumers and businesses in order to provide a special interest subsidy to sugar producers. Now, potential sugar loan forfeitures later this summer could force USDA - at taxpayer expense - to purchase excess U.S. sugar and sell it to fuel ethanol producers at a loss. USDA estimates that cost at $80 million, but some analysts have estimated losses of $100 million or more. Efforts to reform the program could not come at a better time.

The Sugar Reform Act would make modest reforms to the sugar program by rolling back its most restrictive and market-distorting provisions enacted as part of the 2008 farm bill. The legislation would create a competitive U.S. sugar market, without unnecessary and costly government intrusion, including:

    Repealing new, additional import restrictions that were added in 2008.
    Repealing the Feedstock Flexibility Program, a convoluted scheme that requires the U.S. government to purchase surplus sugar and re-sell it to ethanol plants at a loss to taxpayers.
    Returning sugar price supports to their 2008 levels.

U.S. sugar prices have been 64 to 92 percent higher than world averages during the past four calendar years. Due in large part to high prices, nearly 127,000 jobs were lost in U.S. sugar-using industries between 1997 and 2011. In addition:

    The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that for every sugar-growing job saved through high U.S. sugar prices, approximately three American manufacturing jobs are lost.
    While only 4,700 sugar farms in the United States benefit from the federal sugar program, there are approximately 600,000 U.S. jobs in food industries that use sugar.

For more information about U.S. sugar policy and why reform is long overdue to protect the nation's consumers, food manufacturers, and small businesses, visit www.SugarReform.org. 

 

About the Coalition for Sugar Reform:
The Coalition for Sugar Reform (www.SugarReform.org) represents consumer, trade, and commerce groups, manufacturing associations, and food and beverage companies that use sugar - including confectioners, bakers, cereal manufacturers, beverage makers and dairy companies - as well as the trade associations for these industries.