The wholesale suppliers are gearing up to ensure that local outlets have enough stocks of food items during Ramadan.
Market sources said the suppliers are in for a busy July this year. “Usually, business is dull for more than two months starting from the third week of June as a large number of residents, particularly families, go on vacation. However, this time, many residents have started returning to the country,” said a foodstuff wholesaler.
An executive at Modern Food Centre, a major supplier of dried food items, said the procurement of goods for July started more than two months ago in view of Ramadan. “Unlike previous years, this time most companies involved in the foodstuff business are working round the clock to ensure the uninterrupted supply of goods in the local market,” he said, citing strong supply figures over the past month.
Those in the retail sector echoed similar sentiments. Some of them recalled that the month of July saw relatively good business in 2012, too, as there was higher labour flow into the country than the previous years.
With work on a large number of infrastructure projects getting under way over the past few months, the country has seen a steady rise in its population as the workforce keeps increasing. At the end of May, the population reached 1.96mn. There was a 2% fall at the beginning of this month, which could be attributed to the fact that many
residents had gone on vacation.
The rise in population has led to a growth in the demand for food and other items. “There has been a remarkably large growth in the business of foodstuffs in recent times as compared to the first five years of the millennium. One of the main reasons for this is the arrival of a large number of labourers,” said Zainul Abideen, general manager of a prominent business group.
According to the official, the foodstuff business in Qatar is witnessing phenomenal growth even in months that are generally perceived as the “lean”
period.
While there was reportedly some shortage in the supply of dried food products in the first four months of 2013, the situation improved remarkably in the middle of May. “Since then, the supply of such products has shown considerable improvement. Now, things are somewhat normal,” said another wholesaler.