Global Demand/Supply Cause Of Price Increase

Flour Mills of Fiji stresses that the increase in the price of Calrose rice is beyond their control and is due to global demands and supply.

As the price of a 10kg pack of Calrose rice rose from around $18 to estimated $30, FMF CEO Sanjay Punja said Calrose rice is a grade of rice originating from California and grown in a few countries around the world.

Punja said Australia was their major supplier but, now have no production due to the drought they faced while other countries had banned the export of Calrose rice due to the shortage of supply.

He said the only major source of rice currently is America and the latest market price is more expensive than the price FMF purchased it for. However due to their market knowledge and forward buying, they have purchased rice at a price cheaper than the current market price.

Punja said the freight and the strengthening of the US dollar also combine in increasing the landed cost.

FMF stressed that Calrose rise has a very small niche market in Fiji and adds that the price of Long Grain rice has dropped because there is an increase in supply which has reduced the landed cost of Thai Long grain brown rice.