Shop owners are forced to make advanced booking to buy eggs

MELAKA - Local business owners have been forced to make advance bookings of chicken eggs due to shortages affecting the nation recently.

Limbongan Hailam Kopitiam owner Ben Juan, 57, said that he is facing a hard-time purchasing eggs and has had to resort to making early bookings to wholesalers and grocers.

"Last time it was easy to buy chicken eggs but now we have to make an advance booking everyday in order to get the eggs," he said.

Ben who offers half-boiled eggs as a breakfast set in his kopitiam's menu said this situation burdened him as he has had to maintain his selling price despite the high prices of chicken eggs.

"The price is increasing everyday like the sharemarket, today will be RM0.70 and tomorrow will be RM0.90.

"I sell half-boiled eggs for RM1.60 for a long time, eventhough the egg prices is high, we cannot increase our food prices," he said.

Meanwhile Siti Rosmalah, 62 who hails from Shah Alam decided to travel all the way to a supermarket in Melaka to buy chicken eggs since her neighbourhood supermarket had run out.

"I actually came for a short vacay to Melaka, so before packing up to Shah Alam I decided to drop by here to check on the egg supply.

"Alhamdulilah, there are plenty of them so I am grabbing for myself and my daughter's family back in Shah Alam," she said.

Rosmalah expressed her disappointment on the shortage of chicken eggs in Selangor and urged the government to come up with a solution for this issue.

Sinar Daily's survey at Lotus Melaka supermarket found sufficient egg supplies provided to customers despite shortage of chicken eggs nationwide.

The price for 12 eggs in a board is sold at RM13.50 for grade A eggs, RM12.90 for grade B gs and RM12.30 for grade C eggs,