Search the Community

saw this article published on CASE website are we missing something here? or am i the only one feeling this statement is off "331 out of 611 (54%) stalls sold cooked food at $2.50 or lower", and i dont think the $2.50 portion is sufficient for most of us, even if it is really true http://www.case.org.sg/news.html 9 June 2011 Media Release HAWKER FOOD REMAINS AFFORDABLE FOR SINGAPOREANS According to a survey conducted by the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), prices of cooked food sold in non air-conditioned coffeeshops and hawker centres remain affordable in April. The survey focused on five common food items: chicken nasi briyani, chicken rice, fishball noodles, roti prata (plain) and mixed vegetables rice (consisting of two vegetables and one meat), based on the cheapest single portion available. A total of 611 stalls in four zones– North, South, East and West, were surveyed. Survey findings show that 331 out of 611 (54%) stalls sold cooked food at $2.50 or lower. Chicken rice stalls hold the highest percentage (about 70%) of stalls selling their hawker fare at $2.50 or less. However, majority of Chicken Nasi Briyani stalls retail at $4.50. Figures 2.1 to 2.5 in the Appendix show the percentage of stalls with food prices in a particular range. CASE also came across 28 stalls that offered competitive prices on food items and would like to highlight them. Please refer to figure 3.1 of the Appendix for more details. The survey also found: 1. 4 out of 611 (0.65%) stalls charged for take-away. The amount charged for take-away was 20 cents on average. 2. 11 out of 67 (16.4%) of roti prata stalls required customers to purchase a minimum of 2 pieces of roti prata (plain). 3. The modal prices for chicken nasi briyani, chicken rice, fishball noodles, mixed vegetables rice and roti prata were $4.50, $2.50, $2.50, $2.50 and $0.80 respectively. 4. The majority of stalls displayed their prices clearly on signboards. CASE encourages all hawker stall owners to display the prices of food items prominently so that consumers can make informed choices. In this survey, 2 stalls had inconsistent pricing with what was displayed on their signboards. One of them charged $4.50 for chicken nasi briyani when the signboard displayed a price of $4, while the other stall charged $5 for chicken nasi briyani when the signboard displayed a price of $5.50. In conclusion, the survey findings showed that affordable food is still available at hawker centres and coffeeshops. CASE encourages consumers to patronise stalls that continue to offer good value for money. CASE will continue to monitor the prices of cooked food as we believe it will spur hawkers to keep their prices competitive for consumers. Yeo Guat Kwang CASE President