Fish, veg supplies remain stable despite Malaysia floods

While floods have ravaged Malaysia, major retailers and industry players in Singapore said the overall supply of fish and vegetables here remains stable.

Price hikes of vegetables, however, were uneven. The Straits Times visited four wet markets yesterday and found that not all types of vegetables increased in price, and not all stalls raised prices.

For fish, industry players said they have observed price hikes of between 20 per cent and 30 per cent. Singapore Fish Merchants' General Association said the rain in Malaysia has deterred fishermen from going out to sea. But the Punggol Fish Merchants Association cited the usual year-end monsoon season for the price hike.

Mr Ang Jwee Herng, president of the Singapore Fish Merchants' General Association, said the floods resulted in a decreased supply of 20 per cent to 30 per cent of fish from Malaysia, which led to the increase in retail prices.

Mr Daniel Pe, who chairs the Punggol Fish Merchants Association, said: "Nowadays, our sources are quite diverse, our supply won't be affected by a single source. There has been flooding in Malaysia almost every year, so this is expected."

Some wet market stallholders, however, saw a drop in vegetable supplies. But despite the rise in the cost price, they were hesitant to increase prices.

Mr Mic Ng, 42, who runs a vegetable stall at Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre, said 80 per cent of his supplier's spring onions were destroyed in the floods, so he had to source from Thailand instead.

While he found that the cost price of spring onions had not increased, that of tomatoes from Malaysia had more than doubled from $0.80 per kg to $1.95. This left him with no choice but to pass on the cost to customers.

"I can't increase the price too much. If I did, I wouldn't have customers. So I'll settle for a smaller profit margin," he said.

At Chong Pang Market and Food Centre, vegetable stallholders also faced decreased supplies.

Despite this, Madam Aw Beng Choo, 66, is not increasing her prices. "Now that business is so bad (because of the pandemic), how can we increase the price? No one will want to come," she said.

A 48-year-old stallholder at Ghim Moh Road Market and Food Centre, who wanted to be known only as Ms Zhang, said her supplier had raised prices by about 30 per cent.

Although half of the cherry tomatoes she ordered did not arrive due to the floods, she maintained prices at $6 to $7 per kg so as to retain her regular customers.

A vegetable stallholder at Nee Soon East N2 Market, who wanted to be known only as Mr Jeya, said his supplier increased prices by 20 per cent to 30 per cent.

"We absorbed some of the costs and (raised) retail prices by 10 per cent," said the 32-year-old stallholder. "We are affected by the holiday season, not the floods in Malaysia, because kids are free during the holidays and families cook less (and) they go out to eat."

Meanwhile, other stallholders currently unaffected by the floods in Malaysia are bracing themselves for the impact.

Mr Tay Zhong Wei, 34, who runs a vegetable stall at Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre, said his supplies for the week have not been affected, but he will increase prices next week if there is a shortage.

Mr Jerry Tan, vice-secretary of the Singapore Fruits and Vegetables Importers and Exporters Association, said its members did not see any supply disruption as it sources for vegetables from Johor and Cameron Highlands in Malaysia.

Supermarkets said they have not experienced a supply disruption to vegetables, eggs, fish and poultry. A FairPrice spokesman said prices of food imports from Malaysia have remained stable.

"We will continue to monitor the situation closely and ensure that our customers have a stable supply of essential items at affordable prices," she said, adding that FairPrice also imports from more than 100 countries.