PUTRAJAYA, May 8 — The National Consumer Advisory Council (NCAC) has proposed introducing rules and regulations on sales and promotions during Raya to curtail overspending.
Its chairman Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid said Muslims are being led astray with the various colourful promotional material that uses elements of religion to push their product.
“Muslims should prioritise what’s important, not give in to temptation,” Azmi told a press conference at the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry in Putrajaya during a breaking of fast event.
“We are suggesting to put laws in place to regulate Hari Raya promotional material and also to deter promoters from commercialising religion for their benefit.”
Azmi said food wastage was a major cause for concern, pointing out that food waste reached a record 620,000 metric tonnes during previous Ramadan months.
He cited hotels and restaurants as the main culprits when it comes to food wastage.
“Hotels and restaurants have the highest recorded levels of food wastage,” Azmi lamented.
“We see huge piles of food thrown out while there are many starving people out there.
“It’s regretful to see Ramadan becoming a month where we prioritize massive food fests and spend irresponsibly when in actuality we’re supposed to do the opposite.
“This is why I’m calling for immediate action and laws in place to help curtail this issue,” he said.
Azmi also said food waste was a reason why cost of living was increasing.
He said Malaysia is known as a food haven but a lot of the produce comes from overseas.
“It’s caused our food import levels to reach RM45 billion a year with an estimated 80 million kg of food going to waste,” he said.
