As vegetables prices went up last month, these remain expensive - except for local red chillies that saw a small drop in price.
Vegetable seller Ah Wee said local fresh red chilli, which was sold at RM28 per kg last month, cost about RM18 per kg now. “It is still considered quite high as normally local fresh red chilli is sold between RM12 and RM13 per kg.”
Ah Wee attributed the price drop to supplies coming from China, Thailand and Vietnam. He said although the imported chilli cost about RM8 per kg compared to the local variety, his customers preferred the latter. “Imported chilli does not last. It goes bad due to early harvesting and the long journey before reaching local markets.”
However, another vegetable seller, Ah Soon, said prices of vegetables such as pak choy, spinach, kailan and kangkong had increased. According to him, prices of cucumber, tomatoes, long beans and ladies’ fingers had increased in May and June due to wet weather. “We usually have problems getting our supplies during rainy weather as it affects the yields, causing prices to increase as much as by 20%.”
