Sugar In Modern Retail Is Rare, Entrepreneurs: Now The Stock Flood Is Starting

JAKARTA - Chairman of the Indonesian Retail Entrepreneurs Association (Aprindo) Roy Nicholas Mande said the scarcity of sugar in modern retail is due to distribution hampered by the Eid holiday.

Due to the Eid holiday, continued Roy, distributors are closed. That way, supply deliveries to modern retailers are delayed.

Sugar scarcity in modern retail still occurs even though the government through the National Food Agency (Bapanas) has increased the price of reference for consumption sugar to IDR 17,500 per kilogram (kg).

"When it was given relaxation from April 5, it was the Eid holiday, so automatically the distribution of channels or sugar delivery was delayed, everything was an automatic holiday," he told reporters in Jakarta, Thursday, April 25.

However, continued Roy, distribution is already running today. In fact, the supply of sugar with a HAP of IDR 17,500 per kg has started to flood modern retailers.

"Last week it started moving, so now it's in retail when you see that the price of Rp. 17,500 has started a lot, because it's not an obstacle, yes, it's a long holiday," he explained.

The Beginning Of Rare Sugar

Roy explained that the beginning of the scarcity of sugar in modern retail was because the purchase price of sugar was much higher than the selling price set by HAP. Therefore, entrepreneurs had urged the relaxation of HAP.

"The purchase price is above the selling price, yes, goods will definitely be scarce, meaning there must be relaxation of reference prices and HET. So that the purchase price is below the selling price, because if there are no business actors who want to buy it is expensive," he said.

"Buy high because of the sale of HET or reference, that's what causes scarcity," he continued.

However, Roy ensured that currently the supply of consumption sugar in modern retailers had begun to spread evenly.

"So if you say it's rare, it's because of the difference in buying and selling prices. (Now) it's starting to spread evenly," he said.