Selected FairPrice Outlets Selling Tiger Prawns at Half Price for Hari Raya Puasa

Seafood can be really expensive—people desperate for their fix even recently turned to Facebook scammers to procure cheap crabs. 

But there’s no need to resort to that now. With Hari Raya Puasa driving up demand for fresh seafood, FairPrice Group plans to truck in three tonnes of live tiger prawns at their supermarkets, for prices per kilogram $20 below market value. 

They’re only available at selected outlets, so pray that your local FairPrice outlet is one of them.

Sold At Half The Market Price

In light of the Hari Raya festivities, demand for seafood has been on the rise.

To meet that, FairPrice Group (FPG), which operates Singapore’s largest supermarket chain, has arranged for a whopping 3,000 kilograms of ‘live’ tiger prawns to be sold at selected stores.

They’ll be available from today (19 April) to 21 April, so you can prepare fresh ingredients to enjoy over the Hari Raya Puasa public holiday. 

The best thing about this, though, is their low prices—these ‘live’ tiger prawns will be sold at just $19.90 per kilogram, around half the market price of $39.90. 

Just like other food items, prawns are also subjected to rising costs. The prices of frozen, frozen-thawed, chilled and ‘live’ prawns have increased by 15 to 20 percent in recent years, following manpower crunches, inflation, and greater costs of raising prawns.

The prawns sold at Fairprice outlets will be ‘live’ XL-size tiger prawns, trucked in overnight from across the causeway. They’ll weigh a hefty 33 g to 50 g per prawn, and each customer can purchase up to 5 kg of prawns, of the 1000 kg available for sale daily.

Why The Sale?

FPG’s Chief Procurement Officer, Mr Tng Ah Yiam, said in a statement that he was aware “economic conditions are not exactly rosy right now”. The initiative, which brings ‘live’ prawns into the heartland at cheaper prices, helps to increase their accessibility and supports FPG’s efforts in helping to moderate the rising cost of living. 

They’ve also been doing this through working with farmers and suppliers, to ensure costs are kept as low as possible. 

“We also hope this helps to bring some extra cheer to the community as we celebrate Hari Raya Puasa with our Muslim customers,” he added.

It’s not the first time they’ve rolled out an initiative like this—in January this year, FPG sold over 3 tonnes of ‘live’ prawns within three days at selected outlets, over the Lunar New Year period.

During Chinese New Year in 2022, FairPrice sold fish at lower prices too. The highly sought-after Chinese pomfret and popular red grouper were sold there for almost half the wet market price. 

Additionally, FairPrice anticipates larger-scale celebrations and festivities, since this year’s Hari Raya Puasa is the first major ethnic public holiday since Dorscon Green was announced on 13 February. This comes after two years of gruelling safe management measures brought on by the pandemic, which restricted and limited gatherings. 

With restrictions finally lifted, it’s natural that people will gather to celebrate the festivities again, driving demand for premium items like seafood that are usually cooked and served in home feasts. 

Even in 2022, the sales of prawns increased by approximately 20% in the lead-up to Hari Raya Puasa, and with safe management measures gone, it’s safe to say the demand this year will be even higher.

After all, festivities are back in full force—the footfall at the 2023 Geylang Serai Ramadan Bazaar hit a record of 2 million visitors in just 18 days, despite some complaints from stallholders about its organisation. 

Where Can You Find The Prawns

The prawns will be sold at three outlets in the heartlands, from 19 April to 21 April.

On 19 April, you can find them at FairPrice @ Bedok, located at 212 Bedok North St 1.

On 20 April, they’ll be sold at FairPrice @ Woodlands Civic Centre.

On 21 April, head to FairPrice @ Khatib, at 849 Yishun Ring Road, to get your hands on the prawns before they’re completely snatched up.

They’ll be sold from 9 am onwards on all three days.