Food price hikes not linked to Russia-Ukraine crisis — traders association

AMMAN — Foodstuff Traders Association President Khalil HajjTawfiq on Monday stressed that food prices have increased in the local market, notably the prices of vegetable oils, rice, sugar, coffee and powdered milk.

Hajj Tawfiq's remarks came during a press conference, in which he said that the Kingdom has enough food reserves and imports have not stopped despite the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Hajj Tawfiq said that the price hikes are not connected to the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, noting that price increases began with the outbreak of the pandemic and the scarcity of crops in the countries of origin.

He noted that the Kingdom over the past two weeks has received some 58,000 tonnes of foodstuff despite the Russian-Ukrainian crisis.

Hajj Tawfiq, who is also head of the Amman Chamber of Commerce, said that setting price ceilings for some food items is “not a suitable solution to control prices”, stressing the need to “stop this procedure that sometimes affects the flow of imports".

He also said that malls and major commercial centres will play a large role during Ramadan through their offers and discounts despite price hikes, referring to the “unjustified” excess purchases of vegetable oils.

The association president also expressed “surprise” regarding the circulation of inaccurate and misleading information about the foodstuff sector, and the “monopoly of some merchants and the hoarding of certain commodities”, stressing that relevant authorities are aware of the amount of foodstuff at traders’ warehouses.

He also said that the majority of food items consumed in the local market are imported by the commercial sector with an annual value of around $4 billion, noting that the Kingdom has 14,000 importers, including wholesale and retail merchants.