Price ceiling - Milk prices drop across the board

(Baonghean) -Decision No. 1079/QD-BTC of the Ministry of Finance on the ceiling price of milk stipulates the maximum price in the wholesale stage for 25 milk products for children under 6 years old, effective from June 11 and retail from June 21. Up to now, 176 milk brands circulating on the market have announced price reductions; according to the wholesale price list registered by businesses, milk prices have decreased by about 30,000 - 140,000 VND/box depending on the type...

Customers choose milk products at a store on Nguyen Phong Sac Street. Vinh City.

Before June 1, when the Prime Minister approved the policy and the Ministry of Finance issued a decision to cap milk prices, many consumers were worried that this regulation would be difficult to implement, due to the legal loopholes of milk production and trading enterprises that have been going on for a long time. But surprisingly, milk prices have started to decrease and this downward trend has not stopped. This is not only good news for families with young children but also for retail businesses, because when prices are too high, consumers turn their backs on the product, causing sales to decrease and profits to be low. Ms. Tran Thi Minh, in Block 8, Trung Do Ward, shared: "Previously, my family spent more than 1 million VND per month to buy milk for our children. Now that the price of milk has dropped so much, I can save a few hundred thousand VND per month." Ms. Nguyen Thu Hien, owner of a milk store on Ho Tung Mau Street (Vinh City), said: "The wholesale price of Enfagrow A + 3 Vanilla flavored milk in a 900g box of Mead Johnson Nutrition is currently 444,000 VND/box, but the price has been controlled so it has to be reduced to 135,000 VND/box, a 30% reduction. Currently, the sharpest decrease is Abbott Grow 3 milk, from 419,000 VND/box wholesale price to only 258,000 VND/box, this difference is up to 38%. With the announced wholesale ceiling price, plus 15% to calculate the maximum retail price, milk products have now decreased significantly. At our store, in early June, the number of people buying milk was limited due to the psychology of waiting for a price reduction, but in recent days the number of customers has started to increase sharply, with many people even buying cartons of 6 or 10 boxes.

Surveys at supermarkets, agents, and stores selling milk products showed that since the beginning of June, they have received official notices from manufacturers and distributors, and at the same time, the company's staff has come to count the inventory of products in the price ceiling list to prepare for the price reduction. The company also committed to supporting the entire difference between the old price and the new price so that stores can continue to sell the product with peace of mind. However, the discount on milk products is not really even and not all milk stores have reduced retail prices according to the new regulations, the reason given by some places is that the price ceiling will not be officially applied until the deadline of June 21. For example, at a store in front of Hung Dung market, City. Vinh, Frisolac Gold 2 milk is sold for 485,000 VND, Similac GainPlus IQ 900g milk is sold for 425,000 VND/box, but at another store on Nguyen Thai Hoc street, it is only sold for 472,000 VND and 412,000 VND/box... Through research, we learned that the selling price depends on each store. Stores with large imports and large product display areas will be compensated; for small retail stores that import milk from unofficial sources, they will have to balance themselves, so the discount is often less than the regulation.

The fact that the manufacturer does not provide clear information is also causing many customers to be confused about the quality of these products with ceiling prices. At a milk store on Le Hong Phong Street (Vinh City), when asked about the 900g Enfagrow A+3 milk, the seller introduced that this milk has two types: the old type costs 480,000 VND/box, now reduced to 430,000 VND/box; the new type with ceiling prices is 350,000 VND/box. Regarding packaging design, the new type of milk is only different from the old type in the upper left corner with the word "New". When asked about the huge price difference between the two types of milk, the seller replied - "We do not know either, we sell the same way we import the goods, maybe the old type of milk has "cooler" ingredients". A customer who is buying milk at this store is wondering: "Will the new product, when the price is reduced, have the same nutritional value as the old product? The selling price at milk stores is currently inconsistent. When the official price ceiling is applied to retail milk, will there still be price chaos? I think the State should require businesses to publicly list prices on each carton of milk, so that consumers can clearly understand whether the store is complying with the regulations"...

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, specialist of the Price and Public Asset Management Department - Nghe An Department of Finance said: Implementing Decision No. 1079/QD-BTC dated April 25, 2014 of the Ministry of Finance, Official Dispatch No. 135/CQLG - THPTDB dated June 5, 2014 of the Price Management Department on the application of price stabilization measures for milk products for children under 6 years old, the Department of Finance has issued Notice No. 1670/TB on determining the maximum wholesale and retail prices and price registration for milk products for children sent to 26 organizations and individuals producing, importing and trading milk products with headquarters in the province. At the same time, the Provincial People's Committee has proposed to establish an interdisciplinary working group to implement price stabilization measures; Set up a hotline at the department to answer questions and receive feedback from organizations and individuals during the implementation process... In particular, organize inspections of the listing of selling prices and retail prices at retail units to ensure that they do not exceed 15% of the maximum wholesale price of organizations and individuals producing and importing and must not be higher than the retail price before the State announced the application of price stabilization measures. Strictly handle and publicize on mass media violations according to the provisions of law. In our province, organizations and individuals trading in dairy products are mainly branches, level 1 and 2 distributors, agents, and retail stores. As of June 17, only 5 units have sent price notifications to the department, of which 4 units are distributors of Vietnamese milk Vinamilk (EB Vinh Company Limited, An Tho Company Limited, Minh Tuan Company Limited, Thanh Dat Private Enterprise) who do not have the right to decide on prices, the selling price is determined by Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company; they have implemented the maximum price and registered the price with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Finance, Nghe An Department of Finance will announce this price on the industry's website. Regarding some types of products that do not have regulations on ceiling prices, the Ministry of Finance has issued Decision 1079/QD-BTC stipulating that the ceiling prices of 25 items that have been priced will serve as a standard, a basis for businesses to continue calculating and determining ceiling prices for the remaining items, and requiring companies to also apply prices for equivalent types of milk similar to the prices of milk products on the list of regulated ceiling prices.

Not only is it a joy for mothers with young children, the 25 milk products subject to price ceilings according to regulations have also received the attention of the entire social community with the hope that not only milk products for children under 6 years old but many other milk products will also be re-evaluated and have their prices ceilings applied by the price management agency. Because currently, many milk products for children from 1 to 10 years old and milk for the elderly are still at high prices.

Mr. Chau