KUCHING, Nov 8: Starting this week, the public will need to allocate more funds when purchasing chicken, as prices have risen following the recent discontinuation of government subsidies.
A random check conducted by DayakDaily today revealed that a well-known retailer and a supermarket in the city have increased the price of their whole super-sized fresh-dressed chicken from RM10.80 a week ago to RM11.50 per kilogramme.
When inquired about the increase, a supermarket staff member stated that chicken vendors in the city had already been selling at higher prices compared to last week.
“As a result, we increased our chicken prices by 70 sen this week, while some of our competitors raised their prices by 80 sen or more,” she said.
“When the price of chicken increases, everything related to it, such as chicken wings, breast meat, thigh, and so on, also rises.”
“I believe that every vendor selling chicken throughout Sarawak will do the same starting this week following the announcement of the government subsidy discontinuation,” she informed DayakDaily.
Members of the public, when interviewed, expressed the opinion that the government must take quick action to assist the people during this economic downturn, considering that Sarawak has ample land for domestic animal farming and food production.
A vegetable seller at the Kota Sentosa farmers market, 64-year-old Sidod Siteh from Kampung Simpok, Padawan, shared that due to the constantly increasing chicken prices, she has begun raising her own flock of domestic fowls.
“Fortunately, we can rear our own chickens in the village, but it’s not cheap either. One chick costs RM5, and we need to provide initial feed until they grow large enough to forage in open fields and search for their own food and vegetable scraps,” she commented.
“Overall, it takes some time, but to me, it is still more economical to raise chickens in the village.”
Pin Pin, a well-known chicken rice operator at BBC Commercial Centre, stated that she would not raise the prices of her fragrant and curry chicken rice menu.
“We are comfortable at the moment despite the spike in chicken prices. Our steamed chicken rice dishes remain at RM7, and our special chicken rice dishes cost RM10,” she revealed.
Pin Pin mentioned that she couldn’t speak for other vendors in the same business, but she hoped that they could all maintain affordable prices.
“In BDC Commercial Centre here, my regular customers are students from nearby colleges, retirees, supermarket staff, and others. At the moment, I can’t simply raise my prices. It’s a business, but for now, I’ll keep it as it is,” she said. — DayakDaily
