Most bakers raise bread prices

The bulk of the country’s bakers have raised their bread prices following a surge in international grain prices, coupled with high electricity and fuel costs.

Although the Bakers’ Cooperative has yet to meet to discuss a common rise, its president Raymond Briffa said between half and three quarters of the baker population had already put the price up.

The move follows drought in Russia and Ukraine and floods in Canada and Pakistan, which practically brought grain harvesting to a standstill and pushed wheat prices up by 80 per cent.

According to bakers, this meant two consecutive increases in flour costs, to a total of 4c a loaf, which, together with high electricity and fuel bills, has forced them to raise bread prices by at least 5c.

The situation is only expected to worsen, with forecasts predicting further increases in international grain prices over the next two months.

However, the cooperative is waiting for the price of flour to stabilise before calling a meeting. Its intention is to raise the price once rather than every time costs increase.

Asked about the impact on consumers, the president of the Consumer Association, Benny Borg Bonello, said: “One may think that the effect might be negligible especially since the diet of most people has changed over the years. However, one must realise the traditional loaf is still very popular,”

The impact will be much greater once the scholastic year starts as this kind of bread is a staple food for many students.

“The impact is not small especially if you take into consideration the fact that most wages in real terms have gone down over the last few years.

“It may not break the bank but, surely, it will be an added weight on the budget of most families, including the middle class.”

The association is calling on bakers to determine bread prices by weight so consumers could compare them with other bakeries.

As things stand, bread is priced by loaf, with sizes varying across outlets.

Mr Borg Bonello said by pricing bread according to weight, consumers would pay a fairer price and the association could monitor the prices in the interest of consumers.

The association has been pushing the authorities to ensure the price of bread, whatever type, should be marked per kilo.

“The consumer will not only be able to compare the prices from different outlets but also pay according to the weight of the loaf. This is the system we use in the vegetable market and we don’t see why it cannot be used for bread,” he said, adding this would also stimulate competition.

He said the association had written to the Consumer and Competition Division to introduce such a system and was waiting for a reaction.

The price of bread had already increased twice over the past four years, when bakers still received government subsidies. The market was liberalised last year allowing bakers to set their own prices.

Meanwhile, a government spokesman said the administration had been monitoring the situation for the past few weeks, evaluating it and its impact on the economy and taking appropriate action where and when necessary.

“We have also had a number of internal discussions on the matter to assess the likely impact on the economy of the rising trends in grain prices. We have also discussed the situation with some of the relevant stakeholders,” he said.