Bread, flour price disparity causes stir
The Premium Breadmakers Association of Nigeria (PBAN) has attributed the persistent high cost of bread to multiple taxation, high energy cost and other rising production expenses.
Bakers have contended with social media backlash over refusal to adjust prices of bread in line with the crash of flour prices, which many said have fallen by about 35 per cent in the last year.
The association also dismissed claims in some quarters that bakers have deliberately refused to reduce the prices of bread despite the sharp drop in the prices of flour.
Speaking with journalists in Lagos yesterday on the plights of bakers, the General Secretary of PBAN, Emmanuel Onyoh, lamented that beyond flour, bakers are facing severe cost pressures with energy and multiple taxation topping the list.
Onyoh insisted that unreliable electricity supply had forced most bakeries to rely heavily on diesel-powered generators to operate ovens and production lines.
He mentioned labour cost, rising cost in logistics and distribution, worsened by poor road infrastructure, as well as the high cost of maintaining and replacing baking equipment, most of which are imported and impeded by foreign exchange volatility, as other reasons for the current rates.
“We are facing unprecedented expenses in fueling and maintaining distribution vehicles to get bread to your neighbourhoods amidst deteriorating road networks.
“In compliance with the new national minimum wage of N70,000, our wage bills have increased significantly. We choose to pay our staff fairly rather than shut down.
“Bakers are currently burdened by a spectrum of taxes from federal, state and local government agencies, many of which are overlapping and punitive.”
Onyoh further dismissed the allegation that the price of flour had crashed to between N35,000 and N40,000 per 50kg bag, saying that the current market price of a 50kg bag of wheat flour remained between N55,000 and N62,000, depending on the brand and point of purchase.
He said that while some flour millers recently announced a marginal reduction of about N2,000 per bag, the adjustment was insignificant and insufficient to warrant a reduction in bread prices.
Despite the challenges, the association said its members continued to provide safe, quality and affordable bread to Nigerians, adding that the bakers had been encouraged to maintain quality standards while introducing bread variants in different sizes to accommodate consumers with varying purchasing power.
PBAN assured that bread prices would be reviewed downward once there was a genuine and sustainable reduction in energy costs, taxation burden and other production inputs.
