Wheat flour price reduction must benefit consumers – NPP

NPP Leader, MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake said in Parliament yesterday that the Government should immediately intervene to provide consumers the benefit of the reduction in the price of wheat flour in the world market.

Even though the prices of wheat flour and wheat grains are decreasing in the world market and the value of the dollar is decreasing, the two main companies that have the monopoly of importing wheat flour to the country are not giving that advantage to the consumers.

Therefore, the MP said that the benefit in the decrease in the wheat flour price should be given to the people with immediate effect.

MP Dissanayake said this by raising a question under Standing Order 27/2 in Parliament yesterday.

As of today, there are about 6,000 bakeries operating all over the country. Apart from rice, which is the staple food in Sri Lanka, most of the food that the people in the plantation sector get is made from flour. Thus, the increase in the price of wheat flour directly affects the living standards of the estate people.

In this situation, the government has decided to ban the import of wheat flour without import permits.

Even though, the government earlier said that new import licences will be issued even if the import is banned, no new import licences have been issued so far to import wheat flour.

Accordingly, the wheat flour kernels required for the domestic market are under the monopoly of two companies that produce flour in this country.

If others are not allowed to import wheat flour to the country, then Prima and Serendib companies which are currently engaged in providing the necessary flour to the country are earning unfair profits from this business.