Where has the cooking oil gone?
SHAH ALAM - Supermarkets in Section 15 and 16 here has been cut off their supply for one kilogram (kg) oil packets and are left with only the bottled ones from two to 5kg.
A salesman in Section 15 known as Hidayah said the oil packet supplies were cut since two weeks ago.
"For now, all customers including vendors are buying bottled cooking oil," she told Sinar Harian on Thursday.
A food vendor Rosilawati Dilah, 42, said she prefers the packet oil as the price was much lower than bottled ones.
"I have no choice and I expect after July 1 it will be even more difficult to get the stocks.
"I think starting tomorrow (today) maybe grocers will limit the number of bottled oil purchases," she said, adding that she was forced to raise the price of the food she sold since last week due to the rising cost.
In Pontian, the supply of packet oil was difficult to find after stocks were depleted.
Grocery store seller Mohd Salim Salam, 30, said the last time he received stocks was last month.
"That was only 10 packets. The situation brought multiple questions from consumers.
"Now even the bottled oils are slowly depleting. Since last week, even bottled oil is difficult to obtain from suppliers," he said.
In Temerloh, a supermarket worker in Mentakab informed that stocks for packet oils were sold out in half an hour.
The worker said customers fought over the packet oils on the premises.
"We didn't receive much stock, there were around five to six boxes only," the worker said.
In Ipoh, vendor Ramadhan Abdullah, 29, said the usage of packet oil could offset the capital with its price and net some profit selling fried chicken.
"I sell chicken at RM8 a piece and use at least 16kg of packet oil a week.
"Recently, it was hard to get stocks and some stores are limiting purchases to two packets a customer," he said.
Previously, the government had announced the subsidy of bottled cooking oil to be abolished from July 1 to ensure the food supply in the market is stable for a long period of time.
