Some vegetables now cost 160% more, claims consumer group

 

The Consumers Association of Penang said several retailers, distributors and wholesalers had warned that prices of other vegetables might go up in the coming weeks.

PETALING JAYA: A consumer group has claimed that prices of several vegetables have skyrocketed by more than 160% in the last month.

The Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) said prices needed to be regulated so that the people would not be burdened.

“CAP calls on the enforcement division of the domestic trade and cost of living ministry to investigate the price increase as average income earners will be badly affected by escalating prices of goods,” its president Mohideen Abdul Kader said in a statement.

He urged the government to take action against traders who hiked their prices excessively and violated the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2010.

“CAP has also been repeatedly calling for the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (Fama) to take control of the marketing and distribution of vegetables in the country to eliminate profiteering by middlemen but our call has fallen on deaf ears.”

According to CAP, the price of lady’s fingers had gone up by 166% from RM6 per kg last month to RM16 per kg this month. Similarly, long beans had doubled in price from RM6 per kg to RM12 per kg, tomatoes from RM4.50 per kg to RM10 per kg (a 120% increase), and eggplants from RM7 per kg to RM12 per kg (a 71% increase).

CAP added that several retailers, distributors and wholesalers had warned that prices of other vegetables might go up in the coming weeks.

The Kuala Lumpur Vegetable Wholesalers’ Association and the Federation of Malaysian Vegetable Farmers Association also corroborated the price increase to FMT. - FMT