Australian floods affect food prices in Singapore

Vimita Mohandas Channel NewsAsia 4 Jan 11;

SINGAPORE: Erratic weather conditions in the US and Australia have affected the supply and prices of flour, sugar and wine in Singapore.

According to a bread supplier, flour prices will increase by 10 per cent next week.

And to cope with this, bread prices at the traditional bakery will cost more from February.

The price of sugar has also doubled over the past year due to poor sugarcane harvest.

The price of wine has not been spared either.

At My Wine Shop, 30 per cent of its wine comes from Australia.

And with the recent floods affecting grape produce there, prices are expected to escalate.

My Wine Shop manager Edwin Chong said: "The harvest in Australia is between March and April. So by the time they are actually into the harvesting, fermentation and bottling, we should see an increase of about 20 to 30 per cent of the wine prices towards the end of the year.

"And indirectly, logistics and transportation will be affected as well".

-CNA/wk