The fallout from rising oil prices is spreading beyond the pump, hitting plastic packaging and food supplies as traders at Siriwattana Market — a hub for ready-curry vendors in Mueang district — begin stockpiling bags ahead of further price increases. Plastic curry bags (5kg) have already jumped from 300 to 380 baht, prompting many stalls to bulk-buy tens of kilograms at a time. Vendors expect costs to climb further once the anticipated diesel price rise feeds through into transport and logistics.
One food stall owner told reporters that packaging costs across the board are creeping up — plastic bags, rubber bands, cooking oil — and that eggs have now risen by six baht per tray. For now, the shop is absorbing the difference rather than passing it on to regulars, but warned that if costs continue rising into next week, some price adjustments will be unavoidable.
An egg vendor confirmed the six-baht-per-tray increase across all sizes, adding that she would hold her current selling prices for the time being. Should costs rise again, however, she would have little choice but to follow.
