Malaysia’s ‘compassionate’ US$1 meals a hit with low-income, but small businesses wary

A Malaysian initiative for restaurants and food stalls to offer meals for just 5 ringgit (US$1.15) has proven to be a hit among working-class citizens, but participating vendors have warned it is not a long-term solution to the country’s cost-of-living crisis. More than 15,000 food stalls joined the Menu Rahmah (“Compassionate Menu”) programme when it was launched at the end of January. While the plan was mooted by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government, it is a so-called “zero budget initiative” – meaning costs are borne by participating vendors. Salahuddin Ayub, the minister of domestic trade and living costs, described the initiative as a “menu for the people” and a “menu of compassion”. Sebanyak lebih 15,000 kedai makan menyambut baik inisiatif menu Rahmah dengan harga RM5.00. Dijangka lebih banyak kedai makan yang akan menyambut inisiatif menu Rahmah ini. pic.twitter.com/cMkiGizfDU — Salahuddin Ayub (@MyDSA_official) January 31, 2023 Most restaurants are attempting to sell well-rounded meals, with each set including a portion of rice with a protein and a side of vegetables. The cheap meals are being offered everywhere from food courts and mamak restaurants (Indian-Muslim coffee shops) to fast-food chains like Burger King and Taiwanese bubble-tea franchise Chatime. At Mydin hypermarket in the city of Subang Jaya, rows of food stalls are selling rice dishes including Malay “nasi campur”, which consists of rice with an assortment of toppings, including a portion of catfish, sardine or chicken alongside one vegetable dish. And Burger King – with 140 outlets participating in the initiative – is offering a combo meal consisting of one chicken or beef-based burger and a bottle of mineral water at the same 5 ringgit price point. Salahuddin urged more eateries across Malaysia, in particular fast-food chains, to cooperate with the government-led initiative. Menu Rahmah kini boleh didapati di @BurgerKing di 140 cawangan seluruh negara. pic.twitter.com/Us1FY9WB65 — Salahuddin Ayub (@MyDSA_official) February 10, 2023 But the scheme may do more harm than good for some small-scale food operators. Rosli Sulaiman, president of the Bumiputera Petty Traders Association, said it was not practical for small food operators to take part, as some vendors may well lose profits in the face of rising food costs. He told the New Straits Times last week that he did not recommend food sellers with a daily profit margin below 150 ringgit to get involved in the initiative. “The price of chicken now is 9.30 ringgit per kg. If you want to implement the Rahmah Menu and your side dish is chicken, you’d have to cut it into 12 parts and that would cost you 4 ringgit per part,” he said. “If you add rice, that is 2 ringgit, and a beverage is 1 ringgit. That is already 7 ringgit. They would lose 2 ringgit.” Ameer Ali Mydin, the managing director of Mydin hypermarkets and food courts, which are serving breakfast, lunch and dinner sets for as low as 4.90 ringgit, said that the programme might face hurdles with the cost of food supplies shooting up. Speaking to local news outlet Utusan Malaysia, Ameer said the government should look for more robust solutions to ease the pressure of living costs. Although the Mydin group might be able to afford to continue keeping food prices low for three months, that could change depending on the prices of raw ingredients, and smaller food stalls were more susceptible to cost overruns. Video of Malaysian para-swimming champion selling tissue causes outrage Some vegetables prices had reportedly increased by 70-80 per cent this year due to wet-weather conditions and reduced production. “When the menu was just started some suggested it would be [half-baked] but I guarantee for the first three months it will be stable,” Ameer said. “After that it depends on the condition of the economy. If there are no price increases of raw ingredients then we can sustain Menu Rahmah forever.” Malaysia’s food inflation rose to a record high 7.3 per cent year-on-year in November and is expected to remain moderately high this year. Prime Minister Anwar has said tackling the rising cost of living would be a central focus of his coming budget, to be tabled on February 24.