[DRAFT] Coconut supply crunch bites traders: Expect to pay more for your ‘nasi lemak’ and ‘kuih’ soon

[email protected] – Dhesegaan Bala Krishnan

Caption 1: A hawker arranging ‘kuih tepung pelita’ for sale at Bazaar Ramadan in Wangsa Maju, Kuala Lumpur on March 6, 2025. – Picture by Raymond Manuel

Caption 2: Hawker Muhammad Syafiq bin Saifullizan, 25, will be increasing the price of his plain nasi lemak from RM3 to RM3.50 next month to cope with the rising costs. Picture by Dhesegaan Bala Krishnan

Caption 3: Mohd Adam bin Atan, 48, had already increased the price of kuih tepung pelita from RM0.60 to RM0.80 last month but said another round of price hike is imminent in the coming weeks. – Picture by Dhesegaan Bala Krishnan

HL: Coconut supply crunch bites traders: Expect to pay more for your ‘nasi lemak’ and ‘kuih’ soon

KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 – ‘Think of a nasi lemak bungkus, a piece of kuih lapis and a kuih seri muka on the side, with a good cup of teh tarik. Sounds like a truly Malaysian way to start your day, doesn’t it?

But, the humble Malaysian breakfast might force you to dig deeper into your pockets because of the skyrocketing prices of coconut milk (santan) and grated coconut (kelapa parut).

Coconut milk is the heartbeat of almost all traditional Malay kuih, and alternatives such as evaporated milk can hardly replace its richness.

However, with Malaysia facing a coconut supply crunch for over six months now, many hawkers and food caterers in the city are gearing for a price hike in the coming days.

Hawker Muhammad Syafiq bin Saifullizan, 25, will be increasing the price of his plain nasi lemak from RM3 to RM3.50 next month to cope with the rising costs.

However, Syafiq, who runs a breakfast stall on weekdays at Taman Tun Dr Ismail (TTDI) here, said he will maintain the price of kuih at RM0.80 per piece. However, he said he might have to reduce the size of kuih and the coconut filling for items like kuih kaswi, kuih koci and kuih ketayap.

“For nasi lemak alone, my mother uses almost 5kg of santan daily, and that comes to 25kg every week since we only open on weekdays. But, the santan price hike has been insane.

“My mother doesn’t have the heart to cut down the coconut filling. She wants customers to feel content when they eat.

“But, coconut filling using grated coconut can only be stored for at most one week. So, we have to resort to some cost-cutting measures to manage,” he told Malay Mail, when met at his stall recently.

Meanwhile, Mohd Adam bin Atan, 48, who also runs a breakfast stall in the vicinity, said he spends almost RM180 to buy packet coconut milk (santan kotak) every week now compared to only RM100 six months ago. Although he had already increased the price of kuih tepung pelita from RM0.60 to RM0.80 last month, Adam said another round of price hike is imminent in the coming weeks.

“Last week, the price of a packet coconut milk stood at RM17. For nasi lemak alone, I use about four packets daily and that costs me RM68 now. It used to cost me only RM40 before,” he lamented.

Adam said the price of cucumber has also jumped from RM1.50 per kg to almost RM5 per kg over the last six months, further increasing the cost of preparing nasi lemak.

Full-time traditional kuih caterer Siti Monaliza Mokhtar, 49, is forking out even more because she refuses to switch to packet coconut milk, which she claims will compromise the taste and quality of her delicacies.

Siti sources between 10kg to 15kg of fresh coconut milk from a regular supplier in Sungai Buloh on a daily basis.

“The price of fresh santan is currently RM19 per kg and grated coconut price has gone up from RM7 per kg to RM12 per kg now.

“Packaging costs have also increased, leaving me with no choice but to increase the price of the ‘kuih’. But, I am doing it gradually so that customers don’t really feel the pinch.

“For example, I used to sell 100 pieces of kuih talam lapis for RM80 but now I have increased it to RM85.

“So far, most of my regular customers are willing to pay because I don’t compromise on the taste by using packet coconut milk,” she said.

Traders outside Klang Valley are also grappling with a similar predicament.

On April 21, Berita Harian reported that some hawkers in Gua Musang, Kelantan have stopped selling laksam and laksa lemak after fresh coconut milk price hit RM20 per kg the previous week. The price hike also reportedly forced many ‘kuih’ sellers there to reduce the quantity of items served to customers.

Last month, coconut milk supply in Kelantan dipped after red beetle infestations triggered a decline in coconut yield in the state. A slowdown in coconut imports from Indonesia following the long Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays and extreme weather in major coconut-producing nations have further compounded the situation.

ENDS