Economic pressure is forcing hawkers to risk fines or having their products confiscated.

Salahuddin Ayub says inflation for food outside the home has dropped from 9.6% to 9.3% since the initiative was introduced in January.

Reports say the April rise reflected higher prices for sugar, meat and rice, which offset declines in the cereals, dairy and vegetable oil price indices.

Locals explain their preference for traditional Malay fare.

An increase of up to 21% has been recorded over the past five years.

A combination of ample supplies, subdued import demand and the extension of a deal allowing the export of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea contributed to the drop, the Food and Agriculture Organization says.

North Korea has over recent decades suffered serious food shortages, including famine in the 1990s, often a result of natural disasters such as floods damaging harvests.

The hikes follow previous increases in March and September last year, as Japan grapples with inflation and a slide in the yen that has made imported ingredients more expensive.

A two-year drought has decimated crops and livestock across Horn of Africa nations, while the price of food imports has soared because of the war in Ukraine.

Thousands of tonnes of vegetables are unsold in central Henan province, while farmers in northern Shandong province are also unable to reach markets.

World food prices soared to record levels in March after Russia invaded Ukraine, a key grains and oilseeds producer, and while they have since retreated somewhat, they remain above last year's lofty levels.

Economists say annual headline inflation will likely start easing from September's peak because of a jump in the index in corresponding months last year, but price pressures on grains, vegetable and milk will persist.