NFM considering reducing flour prices

While its competitor Nutrimix has dropped the price of its flour by 10-13 per cent, effective on Monday, state-owned National Flour Mills (NFM) said it is still considering it it will make a similar adjustment.

In a media release on Monday, Nutrimix said it will immediately reduce the price on Country Pride and Nutrimix Premium Grade 2kg and 10kg flour products. This price reduction ranges from 10-13 per cennt on its 2kg flour, and 10-12 per cent on its 10kg size.

In a telephone interview on Tuesday, NFM CEO Ian Mitchell said the company was reviewing its position with the intention of reducing the price on its flour. He added that a decision will be announced in a few days.

He said the NFM was monitoring the grain market and when an adjustment is made, it will be long term. Mitchell said what the company wants to avoid is creating a volatile environment where the price will have to be adjusted in the next few months.

Asked if he was concerned that NFM will lose customers to Nutrimix because of the shift in price, Mitchell boasted: “We have confidence in our brand. NFM has the only mill in the country and the Caribbean.

"We are confident in our superior quality and it (Nutrimix's price decrease) is not enough to move our customers from a superior quality.”

In its release, Nutrimix said internationally, wheat prices and shipping costs have decreased and there has been an improvement in the reliability of the supply chain.

Between January 2020 to July the price of wheat went for US$5.56 per bushel to US$6.73. The highest cost was last year when prices increased to around US$12 a bushel.

In June last year, NFM increased its wholesale price of flour by 33 per cent, with a suggested retail price increase of 28 per cent for consumers. The company said that if wheat prices go down, it was prepared to reduce flour prices.