‘Increase in food prices not related to subsidy reform plan’

TEHRAN, April 24 (MNA) – Increase in food prices is not related to the subsidy reform because the increase has been affected by a fluctuation in the foreign currency market in the country and a rise in food prices in the global market, Iranian director of the subsidy reform plan announced on Tuesday. “In February 2002 in global markets the price of meat increased 13 percent, corn 22 percent, and cooking oil 15 percent, and at the same time our foreign currency market faced problems and exchange of foreign currency faced challenges, therefore the increase in food prices is not related to the implementation of the subsidy targeting rule,” Mohammad Reza Farzin told an open session of parliament. Farzin said parliamentarians have complaints about rises in food prices but it should be noticed that Iran imports a considerable portion of its food from abroad. For example, he said, 90 percent of cooking oil, 20 percent of meat and 70 percent of soya beans are imported, he explained.