The UAE is keeping a check on food prices

In every part of the world, most people trying to get by share many of the same concerns: securing safety, health, well-being and that of their loved ones, employment, and being able to afford the price of basic needs – food, rent, electricity, schools, health care, and so on.

With time, however, it is inevitable for the cost of living to rise. This is bound to include an increase in food prices, although by how much depends on various factors, such as demand-supply, governance and political churns, albeit to varying degrees in different countries. It is not a surprise that in this past year, the highest food inflation, according to the database Statistica, was seen in Zimbabwe, Argentina and in the Palestinian territories.

In the UAE, where consumers benefit from economic stability, predictable prices and progressive governance, consumers now have some additional relief when it comes to food prices.

On Tuesday, new measures were announced to bolster price controls on staple foods such as cooking oil, eggs, dairy, rice, sugar, poultry, legumes, bread and wheat. Starting January 2, there is to be a minimum six-month gap between increases of these items, which would protect consumers and ensure affordability.

The new regulation complements other such UAE consumer-protection laws already in place that cap prices for thousands of items. This added measure goes to ensure fairness in pricing and affordability for all.

At a time when global food prices have been at their highest, as of October, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, measures such as these provide an important safety net for everyone.

Broadly speaking, people tend to expect consistency of pricing and are averse to unscrupulous retailers, and price volatility, not least because monthly budgets for many households are often synced with the expected price of provisions and groceries in the coming weeks and months.

And while under this new regulation it appears consumers stand to gain by instances of arbitrary price rise of essential commodities being eliminated, considerable thought has been given to the needs of vendors to run a business profitably. In 2022, the Ministry of Economy had already decreed that a maximum profit margin for suppliers or traders for each commodity would be determined by the Ministry, and that a formal channel would be available for suppliers and traders to submit price-hike requests. Now, starting in the new year, prices, too, can only be raised with approval from the Ministry.

It is also good news for customers to know that the larger shops, with premises exceeding 1,000 square metres, are required to clearly display prices a unit so that people know what they are paying for. This eliminates the unpleasant business of customers potentially being disadvantaged by arbitrarily hiked prices in certain shops, a not altogether unknown phenomenon, and for which violators have been penalised in past years. No one is unfamiliar with fluctuating prices and the experience of a loaf of bread or a whole chicken costing very different sums in different supermarkets or convenience stores.

Transparency and clarity on pricing are important for basic food stuffs, while a wide range of products are left to market variables. Agility and diversification are key components in a dynamic country like the UAE.