However, members of the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Entrepreneurs Association are maintaining the old price for the present, said the association’s president, Jawahar Ali Taib Khan.

“Currently, roti canai is sold at RM1.20 to RM1.70 a piece, but a 25kg sack of wheat flour now costs RM65. It was previously sold at RM45,” he told Sinar Harian.

“If this is not controlled, I am worried that there will be a slight increase in the price of wheat-based products by the end of June,” he said.

The restaurants do not buy wheat flour directly but purchase ready-made roti dough from suppliers.

Jawahar Ali said there were more than 9,000 restaurants run by the association’s 4,500 members, and they made only a small profit on the item.

However, any increase in food prices will be referred in advance to the domestic trade and consumer affairs ministry, he said.

He hoped the government would immediately find a way to solve the problem, such as adding more wheat producing countries to the list of approved import sources.