Floods in Malaysia drive up price of food fast
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Topics: MALAYSIA
The Straits Times visited five wet markets on Tuesday and vendors said poor weather conditions in Malaysia has caused a shortage in supplies as farms are flooded, resulting in poor crop output.
At the Pasir Ris and Ghim Moh Road Market & Food Centre, the price of tomatoes has almost doubled, from $2 per kilogram to $3 per kilogram.
A market vendor in Tekka Centre said his cost price for tomatoes has more than doubled from $12 per 10kg to $28, while a vendor in Pasir Ris said his supplies for the vegetable now cost $32 per 10kg, up from about $10.
The vice secretary of the Singapore Fruits & Vegetables Importers & Exporters Association, Mr Jerry Tan, noted that prices usually tended to tick upwards towards the end of the year because of the monsoon season, but this year has been exceptional.
He said that compared to the past week the price of tomatoes from Malaysia had skyrocketed by up to 150 per cent.
Mr Goh Thiam Chwee, the chairman of the Singapore Fish Merchants' General Association, told ST that the price of popular items , such as Chinese pomfret and red snapper, have jumped by about 20 per cent, and may possibly increase to 30 per cent as Chinese New Year approaches.
At Ghim Moh Road Market & Food Centre and Tekka Centre, Chinese pomfret and white pomfret was costing at least 20 per cent more. ■