MARKET DEVELOPMENT
Kedah consumers' association: Make public price-setting mechanism on unsubsidised cooking oil
Kedah consumers' association: Make public price-setting mechanism on unsubsidised cooking oil
04.07.2022 (www.nst.com.my) - ALOR STAR: "The global crude palm oil price has been plunging since last month, but the price of bottled cooking oil has increased. So, will the retail price of unsubsidised cooking oil become cheaper soon?"
This was among the most common questions raised by consumers on the social media platform after the price of bottled cooking oil saw a jump of some 40 per cent following the removal of government subsidy on July 1.
"The mechanism used by cooking oil producers to decide on the retail price of unsubsidised cooking oil should be made public.
"To be fair to consumers, the mechanism should be made public because the huge price jump in unsubsidised cooking oil is a burden to many," Consumers Association of Kedah (Cake) president Muhammad Yusrizal Yusoff told the New Straits Times.
Yusrizal said by going public, consumers would be properly informed about the price.
"It is also important for the authorities to monitor the price-setting mechanism to ensure that there is no profiteering," he said here today.
Yusrizal said the price of 2kg, 3kg and 5kg bottled cooking oil had been steadily increasing these past months prior to the subsidy withdrawal.
"The jump from below RM30 for a 5kg bottle of cooking oil to over RM42 is steep, especially for the middle-income families (M40 group)."
On June 23, it was reported that the crude palm oil (CPO) benchmark plunged below RM4,500 a tonne — the lowest for this year, because of weak market sentiment.
It was reported that at the close, the CPO futures contract for the spot month of July 2022 fell RM522 to RM4,688 a tonne; August 2022 decreased RM499 to RM4,566 a tonne, the benchmark September 2022 lost RM481 to RM4,499 a tonne; and, October 2022 declined RM471 to RM4,469 a tonne.
On June 30, the government via the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) issued a reminder to palm oil manufactures against halting their operation because of the sudden price drop of edible oils.
Deputy Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Jeck Seng was reported as reminding the manufacturers that they risked of having their licence suspended for violating the Malaysian Palm Oil Act 1998 (Act 582).
Yusrizal reiterated Cake's call for the government to increase the monthly 60,000 metric tonnes quota for subsidised cooking oil in polybags to address the supply shortage.
"Many M40 households with big families may be forced to buy the subsidised cooking oil in polybags to save expenses," he said.
He added that consumers also had to compete with small-time food traders to obtain the supply of subsidised cooking oil.
"We can't expect the hawkers to pay a hefty price for bottled cooking oil," he said.
Last month, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had announced that the government was withdrawing subsidy for bottled cooking oil effective July 1 to address its abuse.
The government, however, would keep the subsidy for 1kg cooking oil in polybags with a monthly quota of 60,000 metric tonnes for lower-income group households.