She explains that due to shipping delays, the island experienced rice shortages for a period of weeks.

“We were low in stock, we had some issues with our delivery from our suppliers, but we are happy to report that we have over ten containers of rice we received last week. This week, we have another ten containers, so we are at full capacity,” Alfay-Henry explained.

The Ministry has, she added, secured enough staple food items for the Christmas notoriously busy season. To that end, she implores citizens to avoid hoarding food items. “We have all items in stock currently at the warehouse and we are fully prepared for the busy Christmas season. There’s no reason for people to hoard or stock up unnecessarily. We have sufficient supplies in stock at the government supply warehouse.”

Despite the shortage of rice, the Permanent Secretary clarified, the price of rice in supermarkets will not undergo a markup as the food item is a price-controlled good.