New local agro-business industries and bulk GCC purchases could help resolve the situation created by big increases in food prices, Bahrain’s industry and commerce minister has said.

“We are calling on financial companies and banks to come forward and invest in food and agro-industries,” Dr Hassan Fakhro said.
Such investment ventures could also include launching local projects aimed at ensuring basic food security, he added.
Dr Fakhro said the move to have GCC states purchase in bulk would be cost-effective as food prices were skyrocketing in world markets.
The ministry’s national price committee first drew up the proposal and then submitted it to the GCC trade committee for further review.
The minister revealed the strategy at a meeting with leading Bahraini food traders held to discuss securing basic imported staples at affordable prices.
Traders were also urged to explore new markets and provide alternatives for each single staple so Bahrainis could have a wider choice regarding price and quality.
The traders said local markets suffered no shortage in basic staples.
The sharp increase in the prices of rice, dairy products and other food items was a global trend, which spared no country, they said. They also blamed consumers for the current price rise as they tended to favour particular trademarks. Consumers were urged to wisely compare goods. The global price of rice has more than doubled in the last year, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation.
It expects the situation to get worse as major producers such as India and Thailand curb export levels to meet demand at home.