Malaysia, the world's largest producer of palm oil, has been hit by an embarrassing shortage of its own cooking product, an essential item in the fried-food-crazy society.
Thousands of roadside food stall operators have been affected. Mansor Osman makes a living selling pisang goreng, or fried bananas, outside the main Pudu Raya bus station.
'I use about 20kg of cooking oil a day. I am buying from the black market at twice the price now,' he said. 'I can't understand how there is suddenly a shortage.'
Like Mr Osman, many housewives are hoarding cooking oil, exacerbating the shortage.
'The shortage is artificial and caused by retailers hoarding stocks to push up the price,' said Penang Consumer Association president Mohamed Idris, who first identified the shortage last month.
The media has also blamed profiteering by retailers and wholesalers.
Some consumers are also wondering if the shortage is linked to a government health campaign to discourage people from tucking into fried food.