‘One Sarawak F&B manufacturer given sugar import permit’
KUCHING: The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs ( KPDNHEP) has granted sugar import permit to a Sarawakian food and beverage (F& B) manufacturer as a move to break the monopoly in the import of this commodity.
Deputy Minister Chong Chieng Jen, who announced this yesterday, said the ministry is in the midst of processing two more applications from Sarawak.
“We have here one of Sarawak’s F& B manufacturers, which has successfully obtained the permit to import sugar. It took about a month for the application to obtain approval from the ministry.
“This is one of the efforts by the new government to break the monopoly in several fields in our country,” he spoke during a press conference at the Democratic Action Party ( DAP) headquarters here.
Chong, who is Stampin MP and Kota Sentosa assemblyman, said the federal government ‘strongly believes that monopoly is bad for the economy’.
He said the federal government ‘is taking steps to address the issue’, observing that the import of sugar is one of the ‘protectionism industries’ in the country.
With the import permit, he said the Sarawakian F& B manufacturer could import refined sugar directly from the overseas source.
It is learnt that F& B manufacturers in Malaysia mostly import sugar from Brazil, Thailand and Vietnam.
According to Chong – also DAP Sarawak chairman – the mechanism helps bring down the cost of doing business among the F& B industry players across Sarawak.
Prior to this new policy, he said F& B manufacturers were left with no choice but to import sugar from their Peninsular Malaysian counterparts at RM2.70 per kilogramme – at least.
He added that when Sarawakian F& B manufacturers have the import permit, it would help them save a lot since they could purchase refined sugar from overseas at less than RM2 per kilogramme.
“It will be a huge saving for the F& B industry in Sarawak. This is an effort by the new government to help address the escalating cost of living.
“We also want to break up the monopoly that has ( put) impact on prices of goods and food,” he said.
As such, Chong appealed to more F&B manufacturers in Sarawak to apply for the sugar import permit from the ministry.
He said they could submit their applications directly to him, the KPDNHEP Sarawak office or the headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.
“The new government is helping to lower the cost of manufacturing by opening up the import permit for sugar – so that the various cake houses and others such as F& N can apply.
“Some manufacturers use a few hundred metric tonnes of sugar per year. With this import permit, they can save a few tens of thousands a year,” he added.
Chong was accompanied by Pending assemblywoman Violet Yong during the press conference.
We have here one of Sarawak’s F&B manufacturers which has successfully obtained the permit to import sugar. It took about a month for the application to obtain approval by the ministry. Chong Chieng Jen, Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs