Ministry wrong to target food vendors

Instead of curbing incomes for food retailers who work hard from day until night, the government should focus on lowering the cost of raw materials and create viable alternatives for consumers as measures to control the rising cost of living.

That was the view of food vendors after the Commerce Ministry's Internal Trade Department said yesterday that it would soon announce recommended prices for cooked food at Bt25-Bt30 per dish from street vendors and Bt35 per dish at food courts.

The ministry said it had to lower retail prices for cooked food after finding that the cost of production was much lower than the current retail price of Bt35-Bt40 per dish. For instance, it said the cost of rice with omelette was Bt13.07 per dish, pad ka-prao moo (fried pork with chilli and basil) with rice Bt20.53, noodles Bt20.65, and fried egg Bt5.

However, these estimates do not take into account related costs of transport, rent and labour. The department based the study on an assumption that the average rental fee is Bt8,500 per month, cooking gas costs Bt300 per 15 kilograms, and employing one labourer costs Bt300 per day.

In fact, the rental fee at modern traders' food courts is more than Bt20,000 per month. And one vendor will have at least two employees - a chef and waiter.

Vatchari Vimooktayon, director-general of the department, accepted that the ministry does not have the legal authority to control retail prices of street vendors, but can only recommend prices.

However, if any retailers charge too much, the department will ask the Revenue Department to inspect their revenue and income tax, Vatchari said.

Took, a food vendor on Charoenkrung Road in Bangkok, said the government's move would only make life difficult for small retailers rather than helping consumers. "I only set retail prices that I think are reasonable and enough to support my family. For instance, I can get only Bt2 per fried egg, but the government will control the price at Bt5. Imagine how much I will earn if I can sell 50 eggs a day," she said.

To provide a choice for consumers, the department has a project to sell cheap cooked food at Bt15-Bt30 per dish under the Blue Flag kiosk project.

This project was initiated several years ago. However, hundreds of kiosks are sitting in the underground car park of the Commerce Ministry, as the scheme lacked operational efficiency. The department should focus on developing the quality

and flavour of Blue Flag food to encourage more consumers to purchase it from its kiosks rather than try to control the incomes of small retailers.

The ministry should also curb the cost of raw materials and rental fees at modern traders, as many department stores impose high rents on enterprises, increasing them annually with claims that they have renovate the shopping area.