Staff Reporter:
S Alam Group will import 12 lakh metric tonnes of daily essentials to ensure uninterrupted supply of essential consumer goods and to keep prices affordable for the month of Ramadan.
With an investment of more than hundreds of millions of dollars, the effort accounts for approximately 50 percent of the nation’s total food demand for Ramadan. sugar, edible oil, wheat, lentils, and chickpeas are among the imported products, according to a press release.
S. Alam Group fulfills 30, 20 and 35 percent of the current domestic market demand of oil, wheat and sugar respectively. The company is working diligently to increase the supply to 50 percent this year. Like previous years, S Alam Group has taken initiatives to import huge volume of daily necessities dur-ing Ramadan to benefit the mass people, it said.
The country’s annual sugar demand is 24 lakh MT, with the month of Ramadan alone accounting for 2.72 lakh MT. S Alam Group is importing 641,300 MT of sugar, which is more than twice the demand during Ramadan, the release also said.
The yearly demand for edible oil in Bangladesh is about 22 lakh metric tons. Out of which, three lakh metric ton is demanded during Ramadan. S. Alam Group is importing 2 lakh 58 thousand metric tons of edible oil, 86 percent of the demand during Ramadan, to ensure market stability, it also said.
The annual demand of wheat in the country’s market is about 63 lakh metric tons (excluding domestic production). Consumers require about five lakh 28 thousand metric tons of wheat every month. S Alam Group is importing One lakh 78 thousand metric tons of wheat, 34 percent of the demand during Rama-dan, to ensure market stability.
Bangladesh’s demand for lentils stands at six lakh tons annually, with a monthly requirement of 50 thou-sand tons. The demand for lentils surge during Ramadan, reaching one lakh tons. S. Alam Group is im-porting 50 thousand metric tons of lentils, meeting 50 percent of the demand during Ramadan.
Similarly, annual chickpea demand is one lakh 36 thousand metric tons, with demand during Ramadan standing at 91 thousand metric tons. S. Alam Group is importing 50 thousand metric tons of chickpeas during Ramadan, covering 55 percent of the demand during Ramadan.
The company is optimistic that these proactive measures will contribute to maintaining affordable prices in the country’s market during the Ramadan season, ensuring accessibility for the general populace.
“We have once again undertaken the proactive step of importing essential products in large quantity to meet the overall demand during Ramadan. Some of these imported items are in stock, while several shipments are awaiting clearance. Our commitment aligns with the government’s objective of ensuring affordability for the people during Ramadan. In the event of any shortages during the Holy month, we remain prepared to take further measures to import additional products.”
