The Mejía administration gave in to domestic pressures from sugar producers. While it was originally established that wholesale and retailers could import their own sugar, a lobby from the producers brought an about-face. The board of the Dominican Institute of Sugar (Instituto Azucarero Dominicano) said that only the seven national producers would be authorized to import refined sugar for domestic sales. These are Central Romana (43.5%), Conazucar (26.6%), Grupo Vicini (9.5%), Central Azucarera del Este (7.5%), Consorcio Azucarero Central (6.1%),Consorcio Agroindustrial Cañabrava (3.7%) and Consorcio Pringamosa (3%). The Union Nacional de Empresarios, a local business organization, protested saying: "The role of the government is not to distribute monopolistic privileges, but to promote the opening of commerce and competition. That is the only way to guarantee equal conditions for all and fairer prices for consumers."
