KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 — Fertiliser producers in Malaysia have suspended new orders following a surge in raw material prices from the Iran war.
Reuters reported yesterday a notice by Union Harvest, a Malaysian manufacturer, to distributors about suppliers revising prices amid a sharp rise in raw material prices.
The international newswire quoted a similar notice to distributors by FGV Fertiliser Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of palm oil company FGV Holdings, about an immediate suspension of sales of all single-nutrient fertilisers such as urea, ammonium sulphate and muriate of potash.
“Some raw materials have already increased by 100 per cent to 150 per cent within just two weeks,” Choon Chun Hong, general manager of Sabah Softwoods Hybrid Fertiliser, a supplier to estates in Malaysia and Indonesia, was quoted as saying.
CodeBlue previously reported experts as saying that soaring fertiliser prices due to the West Asia conflict could push up the prices of vegetables, rice, chicken and eggs, and flour-based foods in Malaysia. About a third of Malaysia’s fertiliser imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
Poultry producers have also warned Malaysians about a potential rise in chicken and egg prices, besides reduced supply, because Malaysia relies heavily on imported feed ingredients, especially corn and soybean meal. Higher fertiliser prices increase the cost of growing feed crops.
