Calls on Department of Agriculture to Follow One Big Beautiful Bill Act Requirements 

Washington, D.C. (July 17, 2026) — In a letter sent this week to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretaries Luke Lindberg and Richard Fordyce, the Sweetener Users Association (SUA) urged USDA to immediately reallocate the fiscal year (FY) 2026 raw sugar tariff-rate quota (TRQ) after the July World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) incorporated corrections to sugar delivery data that lowered the projected 2025/26 sugar stocks-to-use ratio from 14.8% to 13.4%, below USDA’s minimum 13.5% target level.  

“As a result of the July WASDE, the Department of Agriculture can and should immediately reallocate the FY 2026 raw sugar TRQ to move supplies back above its 13.5% target stocks-to-use level,” SUA wrote in the letter. 

SUA noted that the July WASDE reflected corrections to delivery data totaling 145,870 short tons, raw value and urged USDA to restore adequate supplies through a modest TRQ reallocation — highlighting that Public Law 119-21, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), requires at least two annual reallocations of the raw sugar TRQ. 

“SUA also urges USDA to restore adequate supplies through a modest reallocation of the 2025/26 raw sugar TRQ. At least two annual reallocations are, in fact mandated by P.L. 119-21, which includes improvements to sugar policy that were supported by grower and user groups alike …,” the association of sugar-using U.S. food companies wrote.   

In light of the reported delivery-data error, SUA also encouraged USDA to review industry reporting protocols and reiterated its view that the agency should reallocate the quota shares of countries that never or almost never fill their allocations.  

“As SUA has repeatedly stated to USDA officials, our view is that it is appropriate to reallocate the TRQ shares of 10 countries that never or almost never are able to fill their quotas because they no longer export or, in some cases, even produce sugar,” SUA wrote. 

By including reallocation requirements in the OBBBA, Congress provided USDA with a clear mechanism for responding when market conditions change and additional sugar supplies are needed. SUA urges USDA to put that mechanism to work. 

Media Contact:
Anna Miller
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