• Consumer rights activist Asela Sampath notes food mkt. related issues of intermediaries seeking to make a giant killing, farmers’ concerns, & lack of a systematised food supply chain including inadequate regulatory practices  

   The prices and quality of consumer goods, especially food, became a national level topic in the context of the economic downturn that resulted in drastic inflation. Even though inflation and other market-related conditions influenced by the downturn have stabilised to some extent, Sri Lanka’s markets, especially the food market, remains affected by perennial issues such as intermediaries taking undue advantage, issues faced by farmers, and more importantly, the lack of a strong, methodical system to manage certain aspects of the food supply chain. In this Sinhala and Tamil New Year season, those issues seem to have intensified, placing a significant economic burden on consumers.

This was noted by consumer rights activist and National Consumers’ Front Chairperson Asela Sampath, who stressed that due to the abovementioned factors, the benefits of positive developments in the market are not passed on to consumers, and that therefore, their plight has only been worsening despite various programmes. He further pointed out inadequacies in the existing regulations and practices concerning consumers.

He made these remarks during an interview with The Daily Morning. 

Below are excerpts from the interview:

Recently, you raised concerns about the harms caused by intermediaries in the food supply chain, and these concerns have intensified in the April New Year festive season. What do you think Sri Lanka can do to reduce the intermediaries’ impact on food prices?

It is in the April New Year season that intermediaries make the biggest profits. However, despite food being one of the most basic needs of the people, Sri Lanka does not have a methodical, regulated system in place to manage the provision of food (from the farm to the market). The issue of intermediaries’ taking undue advantages during the festive season is primarily a concern relating to Sri Lanka not having a system to decide on the prices of goods by the time they reach the consumer, and it has created a situation for intermediaries to rip people off. What we should decide on and announce is not the goods’ wholesale price, but the price at which the consumer can purchase goods. To address this situation, we need proper regulations in place.

The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) recently said that it was planning to launch an initiative to announce an indicative price range for basic goods every week to ensure that consumers can purchase basic goods at a fair price. What do you think about this?

It is good. It should also be noted that this announcement comes in a context where the consumers’ voice has received more attention in the recent past, particularly through the media and civil society organisations. We have, through the National Consumers’ Front, raised awareness about market price-related changes and updates for months, which received the attention of the media and the politicians, among other parties. In this context, the CAA had to announce an indicative price range. 

You work closely with Sri Lanka’s restaurant and canteen sector, which has also received great criticism in the current context, especially due to inflation driven price hikes of cooked food. There are concerns about the quality and prices of food sold by restaurants and similar establishments. What do you think the value for money is concerning cooked food?

I think that all regulations, guidelines, and practices that apply to all establishments that prepare food should be properly updated in order to match the modern world’s standards. At the same time, the systems relating to the services provided for consumers in these establishments should be improved and structured in a manner that meets modern standards. When it comes to retail stores, I think that it would be great to set a monthly price for certain food items, which means that a certain food item should be sold at a certain price in a given month. For example, a regulation could be introduced to require that a kilogram of dhal should be sold only at a certain price this month. We have been speaking about these proposals for months, and I think that these concerns have received more attention now than before. A system is necessary in order to pass on to the consumer the benefits of market related decisions taken by the Government.

It was reported recently that the authorities are planning to remove food stalls located at the Galle Face due to food quality related concerns, which attracted criticism. What do you think about the importance of maintaining the quality of street food?

When it comes to the issue of quality, a lot of types of food do not meet the quality standards, and there are no institutions to check the quality of food in a proper manner. The necessary actions cannot even be taken properly under the Food Act, No. 26 of 1980. Sri Lanka’s food and beverages sector should be made a high quality, respectable service that is subjected to stringent laws and regulations and also good practices. Once such a system is put in place, not just street food, but any type of food, should be prepared in accordance with the system. Making consumers aware about the same would help to prevent businesses from violating or exploiting such systems. We should publicly explain that this is the system that we have, and that violating it would attract these types of punishment, so that everybody would remain vigilant about such systems and acts that violate the same. It is because of the lack of such a system that there are quality related issues.

A key concern pointed out with regard to canteens and restaurants is that they are reluctant to reduce food prices even when the prices of the relevant ingredients have declined. What do you think about this situation?

The prices of many goods have reduced, including commonly used ones such as wheat flour. For example, major wheat flour companies have been given tax concessions, and therefore, consumers should be given the relief. This issue is caused mainly by the lack of a proper mechanism concerning the cost of the production of ingredients and the profit that producers or sellers can keep. Another issue is rejected food from foreign countries being imported to and sold in Sri Lanka, regarding which we do not see any actions being taken.

Alcohol is also a consumer good which does not attract mainstream attention despite being a product sought by many. You recently talked about this matter too. What are the main concerns relating to alcohol available in the market?

There are inexpensive types of alcohol with no foolproof sticker, and among the concerns is whether such alcoholic products are subjected to taxes. There are also regulations against the sale of foreign cigarettes, but they are available in some stores.