Carnation Evaporated Milk shortage continues, consumers seek alternative brands

By Joyette Mills-Ward
Business Reporter-SKNVibes.com

Basseterre, St. Kitts- Just about 9 weeks after officials in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs assured the federation that the supply of Carnation Evaporated Milk had been regularised, the commodity has again become scarce.

This scarcity has forced consumers to purchase other brands of tinned milk which vary in price but all of which cost considerably more than the Carnation, some by as much as 53%. 

As explained by Roslyn Hazelle, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, the pricing of any other brand of evaporated milk independently imported by local retailers is at the discretion of the said retailer as “government only regulates the price of the Carnation product”.

Hazelle informed that another brand of evaporated milk called Cardinal Cream had been selected as an alternate brand whenever the supply of Carnation milk was inaccessible.     

Supermarkets have already implemented rationing of Carnation and Cardinal evaporated milk, allowing two tins per customer and one case per household. When sold by the case, the Carnation brand was given a wholesale price, however SKNVibes.com has learned that some of the other brands are being sold at the retail price per tin when purchased by the case.

This media house interviewed some consumers who said that after they realised that the usual brand of milk had not been available for some time, they had opted to purchase other brands, which they said, “was just not the same as Carnation”. Some also turned to bottled or carton milk in the interim.

A source within the government’s Supply Office, which imports and distributes government regulated products told this media house that although a specific arrival date could not be given, a shipment of Carnation tinned milk was ‘on the waters heading for the Federation’.

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