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At its peak, Marsiling Mall Hawker Centre was home to 18 stalls selling sugarcane juice. Today, only seven are still in business. The rest have shuttered due to the rising costs faced by the hawkers over the past few years, Chua Lay Sing, chairman of Woodl'It's tough to do business': Over half of 18 sugarcane stalls at Marsiling hawker centre close due to rising costs
At its peak, Marsiling Mall Hawker Centre was home to 18 stalls selling sugarcane juice. Today, only seven are still in business. The rest have shuttered due to the rising costs faced by the hawkers over the past few years, Chua Lay Sing, chairman of Woodlands Town Centre Merchants' Association, told Shin Min Daily News on Friday (June 21). In recent years, both hawkers and diners have had to pay more for sugarcane drinks. According to a CNA report published in 2018, the price hike could be attributed to a shortage of the sugarcane plant then, which caused supply disruptions to hawkers and suppliers. The Covid-19 pandemic did not help matters, as foreigners working at farms in Malaysia packed up and returned to their home countries, reported Shin Min. Planting eventually resumed when pandemic measures were gradually lifted, but the long growing period meant that sugarcane was still in short supply then, said one supplier. «At that time, the price for a box of sugarcane rose to about $37 or $38. Now, with inflation and the GST increase, it is difficult for the price to revert to what it was in the past.» Read more