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There is now a common shortage in sugar supply across multiple locations in Suva; from outside the Central Business District neighbourhoods to within the capital itself, businesses and consumers are beginning to feel the impact of the low supply.
FBCNews took to the streets today to speak with businesses, resellers, consumers, and even visited multiple hotspot supermarkets about the scarcity of sweetener in the capital city.
Toorak resident Margaret Moore stressed that she has visited multiple locations within the CBD in search of sugar but was forced to buy white sugar as a substitute.
“I’m so disappointed. From last week, I’ve been searching for sugar, so we ended up buying the white sugar, and it cost a lot of money, and this is very unusual. I mean these are essential things that we need, so today I just came into town basically just to search for sugar because we’ve been eating white sugar.”
Moore claims that sugar is in stock, but believes businesses are strictly monitoring the distribution of sugar due to the sudden scarcity.
Additionally, a popular local tea spot in the city, renowned for sweet buns and freshly brewed tea, says they now have to buy sugar from multiple locations and even go as far as Sigatoka to maintain operations.
FBC News also spoke with a reseller based in Suva, who also ran short of supply, who claims that the only reason sugar is not available is that Fiji’s sugar runs on a monopoly and when supplies are out, there’s nothing that can be done.
The reseller suggested that authorities allow the importation of sugar for resellers to maintain the flow of sugar supply in the country rather than relying on local sugar alone.
While making rounds in the capital, FBC News also made its way to a particular supermarket that has completely removed the tags and spaces once available for sugar and replaced them with rice supplies.
FBC News enquired about the availability of sugar but was advised that there is currently no sugar available for sale at the supermarket; however, the supermarket was in fact selling sweetener from its bulk at $5 for a 2kg packet per individual customer.
FBC News is now making arrangements to speak with relevant authorities and officials over these observations and will provide updates as the situation progresses.
