KUALA LUMPUR (July 19): MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd plans to establish strategic warehouses in East Malaysia with sufficient buffer stockpile as part of food security infrastructure to ensure continuity in sugar availability during any crisis, according to its group chief executive officer Syed Feizal Syed Mohammad.

In light of a severe sugar shortage in Labuan, Syed Feizal said the group is monitoring the supply especially to East Malaysia to ensure that orders are fulfilled accordingly.

“Last year recorded some operational and logistics constraints due to the pandemic Movement Control Order (MCO) and we had also seen Labuan’s implementation of strict quarantine requirements on the arriving vessels in order to curb the sharp rise in Covid-19 cases on the island.

“MSM Group has been increasing its effort to fulfil the backlog orders in Labuan," he said in an email response to The Edge, noting that recently there was a parallel surge in demand nationwide with the endemic phase.

On July 14, Bernama reported that the sugar stock in Labuan was experiencing a severe shortage due to late shipment and lack of supply to meet domestic demands.

Wholesalers on the island are constantly trying to bring in maximum volume to meet domestic demands, yet they often receive less than the required quantity, according to the news report.

Labuan, Malaysia's international business and financial centre, has been experiencing a sugar supply shortage since last year, with traders, supermarkets, and hypermarkets having been reminded to have control over the purchase of sugar.

MSM, the country’s leading refined sugar producer, markets its products under the Gula Prai brand name.

At noon break on Tuesday (July 19), shares in MSM closed unchanged at 91 sen, valuing the company at RM639.71 million.