Prepare To Pay More At Mamaks And Kopitiams In 2022

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Malaysiakini reported one of the local associations representing 9,000 restaurants saying that eateries have proposed to hike up the price for menu items by 10% to cover a 30% increment in cost.

According to the report, Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (PRESMA) president Jawahar Ali Taib Khan opined that eateries in Klang Valley and prime locations may need to add 10 to 20 sen for the food and beverages such as teh tarik, Milo, nasi lemak, roti canai, thosai, chapati, and mee goreng.

"We have been able to maintain our prices for over three years. PRESMA is perhaps the only association that has asked its members not to raise their prices until 30 December. But definitely, we will impose an increment by next year, at a reasonable rate," said Jawahar, adding that the hike is not for the sake of profit.

Jawahar also said that the food and beverage industry is struggling with worker shortages and that it has forced employers to fork out higher wages to hire staff, thus increasing overhead costs.

Another association — Malaysian Indian Restaurant Owners Association (PRIMAS), which represents 1,500 eateries — believes that some of its members have already increased the prices of food and beverages sold at their premises to cope with the price of raw materials, which had increased by 50 to 100%.

"A carton of 48 cans of condensed milk used to cost RM107 a year ago but now it's RM127. Imported dhal increased from RM123 to RM129 in just a week and we can't do anything about it," said PRIMAS vice-president C Krishnan, adding that it is "almost impossible" for them to sustain their businesses.

The PRIMAS vice president, however, said that price increase is unlikely to have a real impact on consumers as they, too, understand the need to do so given that they purchase household goods.

In a report earlier this month, The Malaysian Insight quoted Malaysia Singapore Coffee Shop Proprietors General Association president Wong Teu Hoon saying that the new prices were to help coffeeshop owners to manage their rising operation costs and claimed they would not profit much from the price adjustment.

"The price will increase 20 to 30 sen in rural areas and 40 to 60 sen in urban areas. The rent is higher in certain areas so the prices will also higher," the report quoted him saying, adding that coffeeshop owners only made RM20 if they sold 100 cups of coffee a day, even if the price per cup went up by 20 sen.