At the weekly press conference of the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM), the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Protection, Soodesh Callichurn, announced that the limit of 2 liters of edible oil per person has been lifted after his meeting with all edible oil importers in Mauritius.
The Minister spoke about the crisis due to Covid-19 and the fact that recovery is slow; for example, the tourism industry is not operating at full capacity. He also mentioned that Mauritius has recently been removed from the European Union’s blacklist. He added that it is important for us to understand the current situation in our country, especially how the war between Russia and Ukraine is disrupting the recovery planned by the government.
As for the statement issued by the Ministry of Trade and Consumer Protection last week to limit edible oil to only 2 liters per person, this decision was criticized by some people, who said that this decision was made too quickly.
According to Minister Callichurn, this decision was taken when the Ministry of Commerce found that there is an increase in the purchase of edible oil in the country, which has had a significant impact on the stock of edible oil. As such, the ministry decided to take certain measures, limiting the number of edible oils to 2 per person.
At that time, the situation of the edible oil stock was not clear. However, the importers have now reassured the Minister that there is the required stock and that they are negotiating with other countries to ensure the import of edible oil, which will be sufficient for the whole population. It was confirmed that the importers have been able to find strategic partners in Argentina and Brazil.
The Minister of Commerce and Consumer Protection confirmed and reassured the population that there will be no shortage in the supply of edible oil and that they should therefore refrain from panic buying.
The Honorable Mahendranuth Sharma HHURREERA, the Minister of National Infrastructures and Community Development, was also present at the press conference and commented mainly on an article published recently in Le Mauricien.
