06/01/2008 (The Star Online), Petaling Jaya - The rush is on to buy cooking oil at retail outlets and hypermarkets here. 

With stores already limiting customers to two 5kg bottles of palm oil based cooking oil each, some consumers circumvented the rule by making several trips to the cashier.

A check by The Star found that supplies of palm-based cooking oil were limited at Carrefour Subang Jaya and Giant Kelana Jaya, while the staff at Tesco Mutiara Damansara were seen busily replenishing the shelves.

Beginning tomorrow, each consumer can only buy up to 5kg of cooking oil in a move by the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry to solve the shortage of this essential item.

Businessman Bernard Lim, 28, who bought 15 bottles of 5kg cooking oil, said that he had to go in and out of the hypermarket to get oil due to the limit.

“I am stocking up as there have been rumours of a price hike next week,” he said.

Hawker Ahmad Tarmizi, 39, who bought six bottles of 5kg oil yesterday, said he would bring his whole family to help him buy cooking oil next week due to the rationing.

Meanwhile, hawker Mohd Saidi, 51, said he would not be stocking up on cooking oil but would instead drop by the hypermarket every day as a solution. 

“When the oil rationing comes into effect, it will be hard for me to run my business. Coming every day is inconvenient and is a waste of time but I have no choice,” he said.

But not everybody is concerned about the cooking oil shortage, as they believe that supply will be restored soon.

Retiree Ahmad Abu Bakar, 59, said that he was only buying his usual amount of cooking oil and was not worried about the shortage.

Another retiree Zakaria Abdul Rani, 66, said the move to ration cooking oil was unnecessary as it leads to panic buying.

“Malaysians panic easily. Look, almost every trolley here has (bottles of) cooking oil.

“The Government should not control these things and let market forces run their course,” he said.

A financial consultant, who only wanted to be known as Soo, said that the rationing would not affect her as 5kg of cooking oil could last her for quite a while.

Meanwhile retailers in the country will implement the 5kg requirement as directed by the Government.

Malaysian Retailers Association deputy president Abdul Rashid Adam said that, at present, it had not received any complaints from members in implementing the move announced by Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shafie Apdal on Friday.

“Because most of our members are hypermarkets and big supermarkets, we don't think they will face any problem with shortage of cooking oil or implementing the restriction,” he said yesterday.