1Malaysia milk: May not so wholesome as milk prices shoot

KUALA LUMPUR (Harakahdaily) - A month after Prime Minister Najib Razak announced his free 1Malaysia milk programme for Year 1 to Year 6 pupils in schools nationwide, the government yesterday said it could not prevent a hike in the price of milk in view of its rising price worldwide.

PKR senator Dr Syed Husin Ali however questioned the coincidence in the timing of the price increase.

“The minister said the price of the milk would rise and he cannot control. The government had just announced free milk for students. Who reaps the big profit?” asked the PKR deputy president.

He was responding to Najib’s earlier announcement in which he stated Sabah chief minister Musa Aman's assurance that there was sufficient milk for the nationwide programme, which has an initial cost of RM4 million.

“Children in Gua Musang will know that the milk is from Sabah,” Najib had said, adding that the state would one day become a major milk producer in the country.

The state-linked Sabah International Dairy Sdn Bhd has been named as the distributor for the free 1Malaysia milk programme.

Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob was quoted as saying that the hike in the price of dairy products was unavoidable as local producers had to bear the high cost of import due to higher price of raw products.

"It is normal for dearer goods to be sold at higher prices. However, the price stays for the time being. We can't suppress the price as it is beyond our control,” he said.