Moshi, Tanzania: The Sugar Board of Tanzania (SBT) has warned wholesalers and retailers hiking the price of sugar arbitrarily, saying it will take stern action against them, reports The Citizen.
The SBT issued a statement stating that the industrial prices are not increased and hence the wholesalers and retailers should not hike sugar prices. The information received from various parts of the country shows that sugar prices have risen sharply to Sh4,000 per kg.
The industrial sugar price per bag at the TPC Ltd Sugar Factory in Kilimanjaro Region is around Sh116, 000 per kg but the wholesale price has risen from Sh122, 000 to Sh130, 000 per bag.
It is suspected that some sellers from the northern regions of Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Tanga and other regions bordering Kenya might be smuggling the sweetener through some unofficial routes.
SBT Director General Prof Kenneth Bengesi has however stated that the increase in sugar prices is due to the delay in starting sugar production by the sugar millers in the country.
