The head of the National Association of Sweets Industries (Asodulces) told Hoy newspaper that the recent 37% increase in the cost of sugar supplied by Dominican manufacturers curtails export possibilities. Atahualpa Dominguez, director of Asodulce, said marmalade producers are no longer competitive. He urged the authorities to revise the disproportionate price increase. Sugar prices are fixed by the government to protect the local private producers. Industrial sugar users have not been allowed to unilaterally import the sugar they need, regardless of the availability of cheaper products abroad. Dominguez commented that the country’s gum and candies manufacturers have gone out of business, and the new price increase is a blow on companies that use large amounts of sugar in their production and have managed to survive.