The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has warned that the country may face an acute shortage of cooking oil and ghee during Ramadan, as about 300,000 tonnes of palm oil is stuck at Port Qasim due to customs clearance issues.
FPCCI President Atif Akram said that the new “fees-less customs system” is causing severe disruption in the clearance of edible oil, which is affecting the supply chain across the country. “Demurrage charges of $50 to $60 per tonne have been imposed on ships stranded due to unnecessary delays,” he added.
According to Atif Akram, the price of cooking oil has already increased by Rs10 per kg in the last one week and if the situation continues, the price could increase by another Rs25 to 30 per kg during Ramadan.
On the other hand, FPCCI Vice President Nasir Khan said that the effects of this crisis are also being felt internationally and Indonesia and Malaysia have stopped further shipments to Pakistan.
He explained that the new fees-less system has proven effective for container cargo, but for bulk cargo, this system is creating problems.
According to Sheikh Umar Rehan, Chairman of the Pakistan Vanaspati Manufacturers Association (PVMA), 10 to 12 ships are currently waiting for clearance at Port Qasim.
“The existing stocks of edible oil in our factories are rapidly depleting, if clearance is not done in the next 2 to 3 days, prices will increase further and next month’s shipments will also be affected,” he warned.
Industry leaders have demanded that the government immediately restore the old clearance system to avoid shortage of edible oil during Ramadan.
