Mon, Jun 23, 2014 page3

• Mango desserts see steep price hikes in Taipei stores

  LUXURY GOODS? Store owners ascribed recent price hikes in mango desserts to a disappointing mango harvest, as well as rising electricity and overhead costs

  • By Tsai Ya-hua and Jason Pan / Staff reporter, with staff writer
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  The price of shaved ice with mango, one of the nation’s favorite summertime treats, has been rising, leading consumers to complain.

  A number of Taipei shops specializing in shaved ice have raised their prices, with hikes ranging from a slight increase of NT$10, to NT$40 to NT$70, which amounted to hikes of between 20 and 38 percent.

  Store owners said it is because the nation’s mango harvest was disappointing this year, and prices for electricity, gas and most commodities have risen.

  Smoothie House on Yongkang Street raised its prices for ice desserts by between NT$10 and NT$20 — about 10 percent overall.

  The store’s top seller, mango snowflake with pannacotta, went from NT$170 to NT$180, while its strawberry and mango snowflake ice with sorbet jumped from NT$160 to NT$180.

  “In summertime, we use fresh mangos. Varieties such as Irwin and Golden Flare mangos are all fresh, whereas during winter, we use frozen ones. This is why the cost goes up,” a store employee said.

  King Mango, another store on Yongkang Street, increased prices of its products by NT$10 this month. Its fresh mango ice with milk now costs NT$160.

  “Mango production in Pingtung County is down and overhead costs have surged by about 30 percent. So we had to adjust the prices, and also allowed us to give employees a wage increase,” the store’s proprietor said.

  Mango Cha Cha on Guangfu S Rd has adjusted its prices by NT$40 to NT$70 this summer, brining the cost of its mango sundae from last year’s NT$180 to NT$250. Its Mango Cha Cha Snowflake Ice went from NT$160 to NT$200, for an overall range hike of 25 percent to 38 percent.

  Mango Cha Cha owner Chang Chi-min (張智閔) said his store only uses premium grade Irwin mangos, which are mostly exported to Japan and South Korea.

  “To keep the mangos fresh, we store 200 tonnes in the freezer each year. This results in a hefty electricity bill, so we had to raise the prices, because electricity costs has gone up by 30 percent, as have transport, rent and other operating expenses,” he said.

  “As the weather gets hotter, we draw bigger crowds, especially during weekends. On a good day, we can sell about 1,000 bowls of mango desserts,” he added.

  A customer surnamed Huang (黃) said she treats her child to mango desserts once in a while and thinks the increase of NT$10 to NT$20 is acceptable, while a passerby surnamed Chen (陳) thought otherwise.

  “Mango ice was expensive to start with. Now prices have gone up, but our salaries remain the same,” she said. “It’s cheaper and more hygienic to buy fresh mango from the market and make mango desserts at home.”
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