Drop in eggs prices not felt much by Kuching consumers; grocery store owners clueless

KUCHING (June 20): Consumers here are generally unsure if the three-sen drop in retail prices of grade A, B and C eggs would lighten their wallets, while grocery store owners are unsure whether to lower the price of the commodity.

According to those met, a three-sen drop is not much even if they buy in large quantities and they can only feel the benefit if the decrease is more than RM1.

Khairul Azhar, 38, said it was not that he was not grateful for the initiative by the government, but the three-sen drop would only benefit big businesses.

“As for me, I operate a small business selling burgers in Batu Kawa. As a small-time trader, I have yet to feel the benefit of the three-sen drop,” he said.

As for Raylene Jackery, 42, who works in the corporate sector, she said she has not felt the effect of the decrease, as prices of eggs here remain higher than in other major towns in the state.

“I don’t see much difference when the price drops by three sen. I still have to pay around RM17 or more to buy a tray of eggs in Kuching.

“That is not cheap for me because I heard that the price of eggs in places like Roban costs RM12 or RM13 per tray,” she said.

A check on a number of major supermarkets here and in Kota Samarahan showed that eggs cost around RM17 to RM20 per tray, while in Serian eggs were sold at RM12 to 13 per tray, depending on the grade and type.

When asked whether the prices had gone down since the announcement by the government, the workers at these supermarkets said they were unchanged.

Meanwhile, many grocery store owners declined to comment, saying they were clueless about the matter despite the government’s announcement.

“I really don’t know what to do next even though the government has made such announcement,” said one shopkeeper at Jalan Pending who did not want to be identified.

Other grocery store owners also declined to comment on the subject, probably due to lack of clear information.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had announced that the new retail prices for grade A, B, and C eggs are 42 sen, 40 sen and 38 sen each respectively effective June 17.

Following the announcement, Bernama reported that the three-sen drop had brought relief to the people of Sabah and Sarawak.

Bernama quoted Consumers Voice Association of Sarawak (Covas) president Michael Tiong saying the three-sen reduction in egg prices proved that the government was always aware of people’s basic needs and its willingness to ease their burden.

Tiong said it would have a positive impact on consumption, which in turn could help stabilise the prices of other basic necessities by putting pressure on traders not to raise prices arbitrarily.

Bernama also quoted Sabah National Consumer Foundation chairman David Chan as saying that people, particularly those in the B40 group, still relied on eggs and chicken as daily food sources, and that it would certainly burden them if the prices were floated on the free market.