Consumers will have to dig deeper in their pockets within the next week as two brands of rice–Old Mac and Rainbow–are set for a five per cent increase. The price hike was confirmed by the CEO of Trinidad Parboil Ltd/Old Mac Agro, Liaquat Ali last Friday. He said the price increase will take effect when the new stock of the rice brands hit the shelves of supermarkets. This was confirmed by CEO Balliram Maharaj, one of the country's largest importers and agents for Rainbow rice.
Old Mac and Rainbow are less expensive than some brands on the local market.
Depending on the brand, the price of a 2 kg pack of parboiled rice can cost from $17.99 to $25.99
“We are still a lot cheaper than most of the rice sold. We are not the cheapest, but we cover a fair market share in terms of the price.”
Ali said supermarket owners were notified of the new price adjustment on Monday and this will be passed on to customers in about a week or so.
“A lot of the supermarkets stocked up on supply because we would have given them notice to expect an increase in price. A lot of them would have bought at the old price.”
Supermarket operators confirmed that there was a ten to 20 per cent hike in the cost of rice in the last six months.
When rice suppliers raised their prices in February, Ali said, they maintained their prices.
However, due to rising freight charges coupled with April’s increase in fuel, the company could not continue to absorb these additional expenses and had to impose the new prices.
Last year, Ali said, the company was forced to raise its prices due to external factors arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It has reached a point now that we have no choice,” he added.
Liaquat Ali
Earlier this month, The Times of India reported that “global rice commodity prices climbed in May for the fifth month in a row, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ latest price index which showed a 3.5 per cent increase since April.
“The majority of the supply concerns arose out of increased domestic demand for rice in Asia’s populous rice exporting countries, as concerns grew about wheat supplies after India banned the export of the grain last month.”
Ali said T&T consumes between 36,000 to 40,000 tonnes of rice annually. Of this figure, Ali imports and distributes about “ten per cent” of the rice consumed in the country.
It costs T&T upwards of $121 million to import rice annually from Guyana and South America. T&T imports about 95 per cent of its parboiled rice while the remaining five per cent is grown locally.
As for a rice shortage, Ali said, he did not see this on the horizon.
He said, however, that we are likely to see further hikes in rice prices due to freight and fertiliser costs.
Maharaj: Expect shortages
CEO of Maharaj Westside Supermarket and Jumbo Foods Kumar Maharaj, meanwhile, shared a different view, stating that consumers should brace themselves for an impending rice shortage and more price increases.
“All rice has gone up” and there will also be a shortage, said Maharaj, a former president of SATT.
“Guyana is now holding rice for their people first. So, suppliers in Trinidad are having a bit of scarcity in rice supplies. We are going to get rice, but it is going to be short. The price of rice went up for the year already…between ten and 15 per cent. The price will rise again because the suppliers are using the same old excuse that there is a shortage of labourers to load the freight containers for it to come to Trinidad.”
Maharaj identified a popular brand of parboiled rice that he often has difficulty sourcing.
He said when a shipment enters the country, it is quickly distributed because of pre-orders. “It is not something that you could call today and say you want so much rice. You would not get it. That is the stage we have reached now. It is a foreseeable problem.”
Maharaj said that within three months, we can experience an upward shift in rice prices.
“Fortunately, Trinidad has all the conditions to grow its own rice and other commodities to become self-sufficient in food. But because of the powers that be, we have neglected agriculture.”
Persad: Rice prices will soar
Vernon Persad of supermarket chain Persad’s D’ Food King told Guardian Media it is inevitable that rice prices would soar, given what is happening globally with commodities and the ongoing conflict with Ukraine/Russia.
Persad agreed with Maharaj that rice prices are likely to go up.
“To say that it would not happen…it is not coming, then that would be foolhardy of me not to agree with what he (Maharaj) is saying. If you look at the global publications on commodities, especially the grains, you would see the movement of prices.”
He said larger countries that sourced grains from Ukraine/Russia would now turn to other markets, thereby reducing supply and increasing demand for smaller nations.
“So naturally, demand and supply would dictate the price.”
Marketing Manager of Xtra Foods supermarket Daniel Austin said while they have seen a ten to 20 per cent hike in rice costs in the last six months, their shelves remain fully stocked.
SATT: MOU will save us
Despite a global food crisis, Rajiv Diptee, president of the Supermarket Association of T&T (SATT) said he does not foresee a rice shortage based on last month’s signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between T&T and Guyana.
“From what we understand, with the MOU signed between the two countries, production and capacity are assured.”
The MOU, he said, is hinged on providing food security for the nation.
From his end, Diptee has received no feedback from supermarket owners that we should brace for higher rice prices or shelves running scarce.
“In fact, I heard there are some brands doing very well at cheaper price points enjoyed by customers.”
PRICE LISTING FOR RICE
Prices provided by Xtra Foods supermarket:
Parboiled
Karibee 1 kg-$8.99
Lotus 1.8 kg-$23.99
Chef Mate 1.8 kg-$24.99
Country House 2 kg-$ 22.99
Karibee 2 kg- $17.99
Par Excellence 2 kg- $25.99
Rainbow 2 kg $21.99
Par Excellence 4 kg-$49.99
Rainbow 4 kg- $41.99
Country House 4 kg-$44.99
Happy 8 kg-$99.00
Eve 8 kg-$ 99.00
Lotus 9 kg-$89.99
Par Excellence 9 kg-$119.00
White rice
Happi 800 g $13.00
Happi 1800 g $26.99
Happi 3600 g-$52.99
Happi 8kg $ 93.00
