SINGAPORE: The FairPrice Group (FPG) has hit the brakes on the prices of some seafood favourites and tossed in a sweet deal on selected veggies in a bid to lend a helping hand to Singaporeans during the Chinese New Year festivities.
The grocery giant declared a price freeze on eight seafood selections, embracing the likes of Chinese pomfret, red grouper, and fresh tiger prawns. If that’s not enough, they’ve also dished out discounts on five veggie delights featuring enoki and shiitake mushrooms and some Shanghai greens.
Why the freeze, you ask?
The move comes as Singaporeans grapple with the pinch of rising costs and a nudge-up in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) from eight to nine per cent.
According to FPG, “The price freeze is also part of FPG’s commitment to ensuring that customers have access to quality and affordable produce for their Chinese New Year celebrations – traditionally a time where extended families and loved ones across Singapore gather to catch-up and deepen familial bonds.”
Vipul Chawla, the Group CEO of FPG, explained, “Higher demand for produce like seafood and vegetables during the festive period inevitably drives prices up, and our price freeze is aimed at helping customers alleviate this pressure.”
Before dropping the big news, FPG sent its scouts out to wet markets in Ang Mo Kio, Bedok, Kovan, Seng Kang, Tiong Bahru, and Tekka Market. They were on a mission from Jan 5 to 18, 2024, checking out the “prices for popular fresh produce.”
What they found wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows — prices for fresh produce like Chinese pomfret and red grouper were sneaking up by an average of 44% in those wet markets compared to FairPrice stores.
This isn’t FPG’s first rodeo in helping the community shoulder the financial load. They’ve been dishing out a buffet of relief measures, from soaking up some GST to sprinkling CDC return vouchers as well.
So, as you gear up for the Chinese New Year feast, know that FairPrice has your back. /TISG