The cost of living in this country is once again one of the many concerns consumers have, and their attendance and discussion at last week’s live NATION-sponsored Talkback is testimony to that concern.
The public interest is always enhanced whenever there is frank, open discussion on matters concerning the society, because suspicions, untruths and falsehoods cannot thrive in such a transparent atmosphere.
We hold no brief for any side in this ongoing debate, but it was useful to hear that about three cents in the dollar represented the profit earned by the retailer in providing the service that puts his wares on display and into the consumer’s shopping bag.
Barbadians are aware that a great deal of the cost of food is the fact of importation. This has been driven into the consciousness of all of us since 1974 when the cost of oil drove the cost at local pumps upwards as a direct result of those external increases.
This is a factor which has to be taken into account when we are comparing the shelf cost of an item overseas with the retail cost of the item here. Charges at the local port and the Value Added Tax, as well as the wholesaler and retailer mark-ups, are all part of the price we pay as a small open economy in which we import the greater part of the food that we eat.
Against this background, we must therefore strive for the greatest efficiency at the port of entry so that a quick turnaround of containers is achieved. This may involve some discussions with the unions, but we are sure that some kind of compromise can be reached since we are all in this together.
There must be give and take if we are to strike the right balance between maintaining employment and lowering the cost of imported food.
Greater effort too, must be made to persuade Barbadians to eat more of what they grow. The Ministry of Agriculture has been doing its best to reshape the appetites and tastes of Barbadians; but it is a difficult job when television and other media project a lifestyle that poses serious challenges for the acceptance of a more Barbadian diet and lifestyle.
We urge the Government not to give up on this worthwhile approach, especially since it has been shown that our indigenous foods may allow us to lead healthier lives and may abate the rise in chronic non-communicable diseases.
Another matter which has come to the fore and was raised on Wednesday evening was the matter of classification of imports. It now seems that problems have arisen with classification of goods, and one recently aired complaint showed that the reclassification doubled the duty payable. Barbadians can hardly complain if they are prepared to demand and purchase higher dutiable goods imported from outside the region.
Our Customs Department has traditionally served this country well, and we have no doubt that the classification system is one which is not peculiar to Barbados, and that proper precedents exist which will guide the Customs as well as importers.
Nevertheless, we hope that every effort will still be made by the authorities to demonstrate that the bureaucracy, including the classification system, is being efficiently and fairly applied and that everything is being done at the administrative level to ensure maximum efficiency.
Consumers may reasonably anticipate further increases if the price of oil continues to push upward in the wake of the Middle East crisis. We urge importers, the unions, wholesalers and retailers to make a concerted effort to keep prices as low as they can reasonably be held.
Consumers will ultimately feel the benefits of any such concerted action, but we are all winners when efficiency is the order of the day. The days of cheap food may be over, but we can make the cost of food lower, if we all join in the effort to keep prices down.
