AFTER a slight improvement in business during the recovery movement-control order (RMCO), vendors at the Kuala Lumpur Wholesale Market now say their business has dropped by 50-60% again.

The whole food and beverage business chain has been affected by the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and the second conditional MCO which is in place until December 6.

The closure of schools, limitations placed on the number of passengers allowed to travel in vehicles and social-distancing measures at restaurants have all affected food-related businesses, which in turn impacted revenue of the wholesale market.

Kuala Lumpur Fruit Wholesalers Association president Chin Nyuk Moi told The Malaysian Insight that the CMCO, which began on October 14, saw reduced crowds at the wholesale market.

“The crowd has been reduced by at least half and business has dropped by 50-60%. We can still operate but business is slow.”

The market’s biggest customers used to be the restaurants operating nearby. Many of these have chosen not to open or have scaled down their operations. Entertainment outlets have not been allowed to operate at all since the start of the MCO in March.

Sing Kian Hock, president of the Kuala Lumpur Hoi Seong Fish Wholesalers Association, said overall, fish wholesalers have been hit hard since March.

“We just started seeing a gradual improvement, with business returning to about 70% in July.”

Sing added that before the onset of the pandemic in Malaysia, 20-30% of the fish vendors’ sales come from foreign workers.

However, with new restrictions that target foreign workers, preventing them from working in markets, and government policies that favour locals over foreigners in job recruitments, business volume is unable to return to 100%.

“From the 70% recovery we made, the CMCO has caused it to drop to 40% now.

“Since the CMCO also restricts gatherings and large events like weddings and birthday parties in restaurants, the sale of seafood has also dropped.”

Sing said fish wholesalers try to work around the situation by cutting back on their purchases of fish and seafood.

“It will be impossible to make any profit this year. We have to be content with having a job and having enough to pay our employees.”

Chin of the fruit wholesalers association, meanwhile, said vendors have also reduced the amount purchased to ensure that they are able to clear their stock.

“We mainly import fruits with a certain shelf life. As for local fruits, due to certain factors, the output has been greatly reduced. So traders do not need to face the problem of slow sales for the time being.”

Vegetables are also one of the most difficult ingredients to keep fresh due to its short shelf life.

Kuala Lumpur Vegetable Wholesalers Association president Wong Keng Fatt said that if the vegetables collected on one day cannot be sold by the next day, they had to be donated to charities and welfare homes.

“Recently, we have also cooperated with some Members of Parliament to distribute vegetables to poor areas or to people in need.”

Vegetable vendors at the wholesale market procure vegetables directly from farms and therefore cannot reduce their purchase volume.

Vendors can only buy less imported vegetables.

Like fish wholesalers, vegetable vendors are also facing reduced sales overall because of the drop in business from restaurants.

The closure of schools, and as a result, canteens, have also impacted vegetable vendors.

“Fortunately, we are currently in the season of low vegetable production due to the northeast monsoon, and the problem of slow sales is not too serious.

“Many farmers are also facing manpower shortage because of the movement restrictions which have led to a continuous decrease in vegetable production.”

Wong said vegetable production normally picks up after Chinese New Year, between February and March, and from July to August. – November 16, 2020.