Fomca: Unfair to pin the blame on traders
KUALA LUMPUR: It is unfair to blame only traders for the soaring prices of chicken.
Federation of
Malaysian Consumers Association deputy president Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahman said the chicken supply chain and sales needed to be scrutinised to determine the causes of the price increase.
He said the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry and Agriculture and Food Industries Ministry should be more aggressive in finding the factors behind the price increase that frequently occurred during festive seasons.
He said it was unfair to blame traders as they were also burdened by costs, forcing them to sell chicken beyond the retail ceiling price of RM8.90 per kg to cover operation expenses.
“As a result, consumers are faced with more expensive raw chicken meat and chicken-based dishes,” he said.
“Regardless, enforcement has to be done continuously to prevent parties from taking advantage of the situation by jacking up the prices, when the supplies of products in the market are already stable.”
Yusof said the surge in demand for chicken had led to some businesses taking advantage of the situation by increasing the prices, especially during Ramadan and Syawal.
He said reports of possible further price increases as Syawal approached would be devastating if they become a reality, especially for the low- and middle-income groups.
“When there is an increase in demand, the prices of products will be open to manipulation by some people who use various excuses to rationalise their actions, burdening many quarters.
“The government must urgently address this issue as chicken is still the affordable option compared with the more costly seafood.”
He said some traders claimed that they obtained chicken supplies at the same rate as the retail ceiling price of RM8.90 per kg, putting them in a bind as they were unable to cover their costs.