Quick-dash shoppers affecting Johor traders as haze alters consumer behaviour
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Traders could not afford to suspend business, even temporarily, as their livelihoods depended on the markets.
PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
- Haze in Johor has changed shopping habits, with people making quick trips to markets instead of browsing. Traders say crowds are thinner and earnings are falling.
- South Johor Petty and Mobile Traders Association chairman Yow Boon Choon said about “1,000 traders” are affected. He warned the haze could also hurt the Johor Jaya Chinese New Year carnival.
- Johor authorities carried out cloud seeding on Oct 20 to cut haze levels. Ling Tian Soon said the mission used a RMAF C-130 Hercules and “8,000kg of sodium chloride”.
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JOHOR BAHRU – Shoppers in Johor are no longer lingering to browse market stalls, opting instead for quick dash-and-go trips, say traders.
Prolonged transboundary haze continues to keep crowds indoors and cut into stallholders’ earnings.
South Johor Petty and Mobile Traders Association chairman Yow Boon Choon said the haze has altered consumer behaviour.
“These days, people visit morning and night markets only to buy what they need, instead of leisurely browsing the stalls as they used to. This is especially true of senior citizens and those with young children.
“About 1,000 traders under the association have been affected by the thinning crowds, which is beyond our control,” he said.
Yow said traders could not afford to suspend business, even temporarily, as their livelihoods depended on the markets.
He also expressed concern that the prolonged haze could affect the association’s upcoming annual Johor Jaya Chinese New Year carnival, which is being planned as a one-stop destination for festive shopping.
The much-anticipated event usually attracts traders, local and international shoppers and tourists, but continued poor air quality could affect participation and attendance, he said.
Johor health and environment committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said cloud-seeding operations were carried out at two locations on Oct 20 to induce rainfall and help reduce haze particle concentrations.
“The operations targeted areas between Yong Peng and Machap, as well as Mersing and Kota Tinggi.
“The mission involved a Royal Malaysian Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft that departed from Subang Air Base in Selangor, carrying 8000kg of sodium chloride, or salt, for cloud seeding,” he said. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK