A number of retailers and importers are switching to the Sicilian market for their supplies as pre-COVID-19 freight costs are maintained on the ferry to the neighbouring island despite worldwide shipping increases, according to the company that operates the service.

Lower freight costs are also being offered to small and medium enterprises, Virtu Ferries said.

The ferry company says it aims to assist emerging businesses in the belief that “cutting costs in the current situation is essential for repositioning post-COVID-19”.

Importers sourcing products from Italy, and in particular Sicily, have not seen an increase in freight charges from pre-COVID levels, the company said, adding this was “firmly against the world trend”.

Managing director Henri Saliba was unable to supply statistics on the businesses shifting to Sicily to stock up on supplies and reduce their cost of carriage.

But he said “a number of bookings from not-so-frequent cargo clients have been noticed”, while small businesses and the catering industry were “asking questions about the market next door”.

“There has definitely been a wave of interest in Sicily from local retailers, importers and SMEs to service their clients at a cheaper rate and with faster delivery,” Saliba said.

“This makes sense in view of the increase in prices on everyone’s lips and also issues with delivery delays, not only for food, but also across the board, and even for car parts, for example.”

Virtu Ferries referred to economic predictions of price increases in most commodities, including food and daily needs, largely due to the worldwide increase in freight charges and other factors such as the pandemic.

It quoted reports of freight costs for a container shooting up from around €2,000 to €17,000 and resulting in a 500 per cent increase in the price of certain commodities.

But Saliba’s message was: “If you try and do your best, you may be able to cushion these increases.”

With the Sicilian market just 90 minutes away, it could be “considered an extension of our own”, he said.

The company said some hotels and restaurants have resorted to importation from Sicily to counter the local increase in prices of food products.

But the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association said hotels and restaurants do not usually directly import their own consumer items and it was not worth setting up their own supply chain once this was already established.

A food and beverage importer and distributor who spoke to Times of Malta also met the claim with scepticism. 

He said the significant problem for importers was an eight-fold increase in the cost of freight from Asia, rather than a particularly high increase from ports in Europe.

"Importers importing from Europe have not hiked up the prices," he said. "Prices did go up from suppliers across the board but... prices have gone up for everyone and Sicily is no exception.

"It’s a great advert for Virtu Ferries and another blow for us importers!"

Asked how the company was able to reduce prices in the current climate, Saliba explained that having launched a second vessel during COVID-19, it had ample capacity and could afford to “go for volumes”.

He also floated the idea that Italy could import larger quantities of products from the Far East and supply Malta with its China imports.

“Importers should look at all possibilities to save costs,” Saliba said.