Veg prices to stabilise when weather improves

Cost up: Supply of vegetables has reduced due to floods, leading to high prices. — THOMAS YONG/The Star

PETALING JAYA: Erratic weather and floods have caused consumers to pay more for vegetables such as cucumber and sawi (mustard leaf).

Farmers, however, said the price spike is temporary and should stabilise when the weather improves.

Malaysia Federation of Vegetable Farmers’ Associations president Lim Ser Kwee pointed out that the erratic weather had begun towards the end of last year and vegetable prices have fluctuated since.

“We are only now seeing the effects of the heavy rain and floods on vegetable prices as the production has been affected.

“Now, vegetable prices such as for long beans and cucumbers have increased,” he said.

He said a lot of sawi (choy sum) plants were submerged in water.

In a price list shared by Lim, the cucumber prices at Pasar Borong Kuala Lumpur on March 8 had risen by 75% to RM3.50 per kg, compared to RM2 on Feb 24.

Meanwhile, sawi bunga is being sold at RM8, compared to RM7 two weeks earlier, while Japanese cucumber is now sold at RM5, a 67% increase.

Lim said the continuous heavy rain had damaged more than 1,000 tonnes of vegetables at farms in the south, with losses amounting to tens of millions of ringgit.

“Vegetables like cucumbers need at least 33 days before they can be harvested, while long beans take around two months and kangkung 20 days,” he said.

While the government had allocated cash assistance to farmers, he said there were some who had yet to receive the money.

“We hope the government will expedite the cash aid for farmers because so many have been affected by the recurring floods,” he said.

He said these farmers had to start replanting all over again as all their crops had been destroyed.

Kuala Lumpur Vegetable Whole-salers’ Association president Wong Keng Fatt said wholesale prices of tomatoes had risen to over RM8 per kg and Japanese cucumbers from RM7.50 to RM8 per kg.

He hopes the government will give more aid to farmers – in the form of soil and fertilisers as well – and allow more foreign workers in the agriculture sector.

If the weather continues to improve over the next two to three weeks, consumers can then expect cheaper vegetable prices during the start of the Ramadan month.

Kenn Wai, who runs Agro Bright Farm, said sawi and cucumbers were the most common vegetables to be affected by the weather.

“These vegetables are consumed the most by locals, and if it rains heavily or the weather conditions are erratic, it will definitely affect prices as production cannot keep up with demand,” he said.