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A stall at the newly-opened Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre in Sembawang was charging up to S$0.80 for a takeaway container, Shin Min Daily News reported.

The steep cost of the takeaway packaging for hawker fare at that particular food centre came as a rude shock to one diner, who was there on Saturday, Dec. 17, after opting to pack food home given that the venue was crowded on its opening day.

To suss things out, a Shin Min reporter headed to the hawker centre to get a better sense of the pricing for takeaway packaging.

Most expensive packaging: 80 cents

It was discovered that most stalls charged between S$0.30 and S$0.50 extra for the takeaway option, with signs at many stalls indicating the additional costs of packing food to go.

The cheapest extra cost for the takeaway option was S$0.20, while the most expensive was S$0.80 -- as offered by a Korean food stall.

Balked at price

And the 80 cents price tag appeared difficult to swallow for some customers.

A stall assistant told the Chinese newspaper that a customer had retreated quickly after learning of the extra 80 cents costs.

Such a takeaway charge had affected business, it was also revealed.

Biodegradable containers costlier

It turns out, the heftier costs was due to the requirement that hawkers use biodegradable takeaway containers, which are more expensive, a 27-year-old ban mian stall owner told Shin Min.

Each biodegradable takeaway container costs about 50 cents, it was revealed.

By pricing the takeaway charge at just 30 cents, his stall was effectively absorbing the cost, the stall owner explained.

Operator steps in

In response to queries, Canopy Hawkers Group, the operator of Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre, told Mothership that the goal was to make Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre an environmentally-friendly venue.

Diners are encouraged to bring their own takeaway containers, the group said.

Given the public's response, the range of takeaway container pricing has since been standardised across the board for all the hawker stalls.

Joey Tan, the managing director of Canopy Hawkers Group, said: "We are aware that there has been feedback from the public on the prices of takeaway packaging charged at Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre."

"However, we have taken in the feedback and have quickly worked with our stallholders. We are also assisting our stallholders by sourcing and introducing vendors who offer bulk-buy programmes for takeaway packaging to keep costs low."

"All takeaway packaging will now be no more than 30 cents."

Top photos via Shin Min Daily News & Jimmy Lee/ Google Maps