Food stalls hit hard by sugar shortage
Shufiyan Shukur
Aug 19, 06 11:37am
Pakcik Amir Wahab, who has been operating a street-side stall for five years, lamented the difficulty of getting his supply of sugar to make his assortment of traditional cakes, cookies and banana fritters. "I require about 12 to 13 kilogrammes of sugar every five days, but sometimes the shops permit me to buy only 2 kg at one time which is not enough," he sighed.
"And sometimes I can't even get that," added Amir at his stall in Kuala Lumpur’s Bangsar Utama, which he runs with the help from his wife. Without the quantities of sugar he needs, he makes fewer cakes to sell and his daily takings have dropped substantially.
"Operating the stall is the only way I make a living and it's getting increasingly difficult to do that," he said. Amir doesn't mind if the price of sugar increases, but the increase must be reasonable.
"Some shops are selling sugar at RM2 per kg when the retail price is only between RM1.40 and RM1.45 per kg. "Such a huge increase is not acceptable," he added. [See video clip]
Operating on the same street and just a few feet from Amir is Bakri Taufik (photo), who isn't so badly affected by the sugar shortage. As he fries mostly banana fritters, ubi keladi (yam), ubi kayu (tapioca) and ubi keledek (sweet potato), his sugar requirements are not in the bucket loads - just 2kg a day and he has no difficulty in getting that quantity regularly.
"Except for the ubi kayu, all the other fried snacks use very little sugar so the shortage hasn't affected me at all," he said. Bakri buys his sugar at RM1.50 per kg which he said has been the price he has paid for the last five years. [See video clip]
Bad for business Puan Rohaya Rahim, however, is deeply concerned. Her business of making of breads and cakes which she supplies everyday to her distributors around the Klang Valley requires a whopping five 50kg bags of castor sugar everyday.
"But for Hari Raya, I make 550,000 cookies and this year, I have a higher target. But the sugar shortage is worrying because I have difficulty in getting icing and castor sugar," she complained. In preparing for the Hari Raya demand for her cookies, Rohaya needs 50 25kg bags of icing sugar and 10 50kg bags of castor sugar.
"Suppliers are now selling castor and icing sugar in smaller quantities which cost me a lot more, but I can't increase the price of my cookies because the price has already been fixed," she said. Rohaya wants to know what actions are being taken by the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs to ensure that sugar will be available for the festive season.
"My target date to start producing the cookies is August 15 to meet Hari Raya demand, but I'm still struggling to secure the sugar supplies that I need," she added. For stall holders like Pakcik Amir, the fasting month is usually the time for them to look forward to brisk sales as traditional cakes are popular for the breaking of fast. Unless the supply of sugar starts flowing regularly again, this year's Hari Raya in October will be a miserable one for them.
Minang is 'Minangkabau', a clan in Sumatra. The clan has a symbiotic relationship with the buffalo, or 'kerbau' in Malay or 'korobau' or 'kobau' in the Minang dialect. 'Minangkabau' is derived from 'menang kerbau' -- win buffalo. The Sumatran clans pitch their buffalos against each other, and the Minangs have the reputation of having the fastest buffalos in Sumatra. This blog isn't much use to anyone else though. There are no revelations and no discussions -- just a Minang's folly.
Monday, September 11, 2006
Sugar shortage: Get tough with hoarders, smugglers
Shufiyan Shukur
Aug 18, 06 12:49pm
Consumer associations are becoming increasingly bitter over the sugar shortage affecting the country. One of them urges the authorities to come down hard on those responsible, including using security laws that provide for detention without trial.
The Consumers Association of Subang and Shah Alam (Cassa) believes that the sugar shortage is caused by hoarding and smuggling.
The authorities, it said, should stop pussyfooting and use the Emergency Ordinance (EO) against the culprits.
"This problem has been going on since April and there seems to be no let up in the shortage of sugar around the country so tougher action is needed," said Cassa president Dr Jacob George.
The EO, similar to the Internal Security Act, allows for suspects to be held for two
George said Cassa has been receiving daily reports and complaints from people around the country.
Although primarily focused on consumer issues affecting Subang and Shah Alam, Cassa's hotline number is well known around the country and its popularity has taken its president to Kelantan, Perlis, Melaka and Port Dickson to inspect the situation first hand.
"We've become like a national referral centre," he said.
Ministry being soft
George expressed disappointment with the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (MDTCA) which is resorting to the soft method of advising the public through billboards and press statements to consume less sugar and they point fingers at others.
"There's no point in advising people to reduce their consumption of sugar. Yes it's true that high sugar consumption causes health problems and we fully agree with that, but that's a personal choice.
"In areas like Kelantan where women are traditionally the bread-winners by making traditional cakes, cookies and delicacies, they are severely affected by the shortage.
"Similarly around the country, families who are supplementing their income by selling these traditional fairs in stalls to meet the rising cost of living brought on by recent hikes in petrol and electricity prices are badly affected too," he said.
To make matters worse, he said there are some consumer associations departing from consumer interests by asking for an increase in the price of sugar.
George was referring to the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations' (Fomca) call for the government to increase the price of sugar from the current RM1.40 - RM1.45 sen ceiling by 30sen to RM1.70 - RM1.75 per kilogramme.
"This is unbelievable and cannot be understood in today's situation where consumers are braving higher costs of living," he added.
The Cassa president said if the price of sugar goes up, consumer items that have sugar as an important ingredient will definitely go up.
"Beverages like Coca-Cola have standard formulas that their factories around the world have to follow, so it's not just a matter of simply reducing the quantity of sugar used in the Malaysian plant to maintain local prices, and this is the same for all food and beverage products" he added.
Hammer approach
George attributes the sugar shortage to hoarding and smuggling and what he calls 'the black hand' that's manipulating the sugar market.
"We are calling the government to invoke emergency laws, because the economy of the country is being threatened by these people.
"They are subverting the country through their activities and with emergency ordinance we can freeze their accounts, conduct raids, seize their warehouses and conduct arrests," he said.
"The ministry needs to use the 'hammer' approach, not the soft approach because of the severity of the situation," he added.
George asked how smuggling can take place under the noses of the authorities.
"Are there individuals in the enforcement units who are aiding and abetting the smugglers, just as we have seen in the illegal VCD and DVD trade?" he asked.
George does not agree with the MDTCA that the problem lies with the four refineries.
"This shows that the refineries are producing the required amounts and they need to produce only 70% of their combined capacity to meet local demands," he said.
"The ministry is blaming everyone except themselves. The ministry said the problem will be solved in August, but I don't see this happening because the cause of the shortage hasn't been removed - the movers and shakers are still there, they have not been detained and are still operating so how can you say the problem will be solved?" George continued.
"The ministry is just looking at a fast solution by asking the refineries to increase production without looking at the real issues,” he added.
Sugar refineries silent
Although agreeing that the sugar monopoly should be broken, George said the culprits are the distributors and wholesalers because these are the ones with the infrastructure to move sugar supplies and it is this level that should be tackled first.
"But the big boys (referring to the four refineries) are keeping quiet, letting the Ministry of International Trade and Industry do the talking for them, which I think is a rather sad situation," he added.
Addressing the sugar refineries, he said: "If you remain silent, people think you are aiding and abetting because at the end of the day, if the price goes up, you make a killing. If there are irregularities and discrepancies you should be giving the information to the authorities, you have the permits, you should be responsible."
"The minister should meet people like us (consumer groups) who can provide him a better picture of what's happening on the ground.
"We receive feedback all the time through our hotlines and informants and we're willing to give him the benefit of this information and work with him on a sustainable solution.
"But so far he hasn't asked for a meeting," George said.
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Time to hike sugar prices to curb shortages?
Aug 17, 06 11:55am
The government should increase the retail price of sugar by as much as 30 sen per kilogram to RM1.70 from its current controlled retail price of RM1.40 to RM1.45 sen per kilogramme to help alleviate the current sugar shortage.
This is the unpopular proposal from the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca).
“One of the reasons for the sugar shortage is smuggling since the price of the item is so much cheaper in
“A higher retail price will discourage smugglers since their profit margins won’t be great enough to warrant the risks involved in smuggling,” he added.
According to reports, the retail price of sugar in
But wouldn’t an increase in the price of sugar, so soon after the increase in petrol prices and electricity rates, create a chain reaction of a further round of price hikes in essentials such as food items and beverages?
Reduce the use of sugar
Mohd Yusof said Fomca’s view is that manufacturers of food items and beverages should reduce the use of sugar as ingredients in their products and so there shouldn’t be price increases for these items.
“Fomca is in common with the Ministry of Health’s call for less use of sugar in products such as carbonated beverages.
“We should also encourage less use of sugar in our diets because sugar has been attributed to being one of the chief causes of obesity and diabetes amongst Malaysians,” he added.
Fomca and its member associations around the country have been receiving numerous complaints from consumers on the difficulty of purchasing sugar and the quota imposed by supermarkets on individual purchases.
“Some retailers and supermarkets are imposing a 2kg limit per purchase, but for those engaging in business such as selling traditional cakes and drinks, they can’t get by on the one or two kilogramme limit that many shops impose,” Mohd Yusof said.
Disappointed with ministry
“We are disappointed with the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs that this shortage has been going on since April and until now there has been no solution to the problem,” he added.
He said the ministry did not view the shortage as a serious problem initially, even though sugar is an essential item and is a product that falls under Akta Kawalan Bekalan 1961 which guarantees availability and Akta Kawalan Harga 1946 which determines the ceiling price.
“So the government needs to do its utmost to ensure supply and price because consumers and businesses are being badly hit by the shortage.
“We are monitoring the situation through our affiliates, other consumer associations and from the public as well and report the situation on the ground to the ministry.
“There have been times when the ministry had directed supplies after being alerted of the non availability of sugar in a particular area, and although we are grateful for the effort, Fomca is not happy with this long drawn out shortage,” he added.
The ministry has also pointed the finger at wholesalers and retailers who hoard sugar in anticipation of a price increase - in view of the high raw sugar prices in the open market - as a chief cause of the shortage.
“Although the ministry is putting in the efforts to act against errant wholesalers and retailers, monitoring and enforcement still needs to be better, because we don’t want them to profit if the government does increase the price of sugar in the near future.
“Now even consumers are hoarding, afraid that there won’t be sugar for the festive season, and this has compounded the problem,” Mohd Yusof said.
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My 'Sugar' pieces in Malaysiakini.com
Sugar shortage: End monopoly by 'kings'
Aug 16, 06 1:04pm
The Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations (Fomca) has questioned the rationale of allowing just four companies to import and refine raw sugar, saying the system must be partly blamed for the nationwide sugar shortage. Stop blame-game
Director of communications Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahman said the refiners import sugar through a Long Term Contract (LTC) with stated quotas and pricing, as well as at open market prices from the main producers.
Derivatives such as refined, brown and castor sugar are then produced for export and local distribution.
“We don’t see why the country should limit ownership of sugar refineries to four companies, which are controlled by just two people - ‘Sugar King’ Robert Kuok and Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary,” he said.
Kuok, through his listed flagship Perlis Plantation Group Bhd, controls Malayan Sugar Manufacturing and Kilang Gula Felda Perlis, a joint-venture with the Federal Land Development Authority.
Syed Mokhtar, through Tradewinds (M) Bhd, controls Central Sugar Refinery and Gula Padang Terap.
Fomca believes that the four companies should be monitored closely to determine if enough sugar is being allocated for domestic needs, since higher prices in neighbouring countries make exporting a more attractive option.
“How difficult is it to monitor four companies?” Mohd Yusof asked.
A Malay-language daily recently quoted a source in the domestic trade and consumer affairs ministry as tracing the sugar shortage to the Approved Permits (APs) issued by the international trade and industry minister for raw sugar imports.
The source further alleged that refineries have been exporting refined sugar to capitalise on the
higher prices abroad, or are producing other types of sugar - one was said to have used its entire 56,000-tonne quota from the LTC to produce gula merah, brown sugar and icing sugar.
On July 18, however, national news agency Bernama quoted International Trade and Industry Minister Rafidah Aziz as deflecting criticism levelled at the refiners, by denying the existence
of APs.
She said the refineries are producing the tonnage of refined sugar required for domestic needs and blamed the distribution system, smuggling and hoarding by wholesalers and retailers as the main causes of the shortage.
Mohd Yusof said both ministries, instead of assigning blame, should work towards a solution - whether it is to restrict the export quota, increase the number of refineries, break the 10-year retail price ceiling of RM1.40 - RM1.45 per kg, or exert greater vigilance over the movement of sugar by refineries and wholesalers.
“Fomca has been asking for legislation along the lines of a Fair Trade Act for many years. This will address a lot of issues, such as putting in place
mechanisms and procedures to prevent hoarding and profiteering,” Mohd Yusof said.
“We feel this is urgent because sugar is just one of the controlled essential items. Other essentials such as rice and flour could face similar problems in future. We also feel that essential items should not be in the hands of monopolies.”
An industry source pointed to manufacturing and distribution as the ‘choke points’, saying that structural issues need to be resolved.
Until these are tackled, he warned, enforcement efforts at the wholesale level will not make much difference and “not one grain of sugar will reach the shelves to satisfy consumer needs”.
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