Rising bread prices in Aba, the commercial nerve centre of Abia State, is likely to compound the hunger situation in that axis of Eastern Nigeria. Residents of the commercial town are crying out over the sudden increase in the prices of bread by the state wing of the Association of Master Bakers.
The Association of Master Bakers in Abia increased the prices of bread last March following a hike in the prices of materials used for baking bread and barely a few weeks after that increase in price, they have done another increase in price.
Before the current hike prices of bread, Sir Christopher Uba, the Chairman of, the Association of Master Bakers, Abia chapter had said their recent bread price increase in March will soon be reviewed upwards.
Uba who disclosed in Aba during an interview with newsmen said although the price increase in March was the second in four months, they would increase the price again as inflation is taking a toll on the markets.
He said they were forced to increase the price of the staple food because of daily increases in the prices of materials used in making bread.
According to Uba, bakers in Abia increased the price of bread late compared to their colleagues in Anambra who increased theirs before Abia and based on how things are already in the markets.
“We made efforts before increasing the price of bread to make our customers understand that the prices of materials for making bread had gone up.
“A bag of flour now in N23, 000 as against N10, 000 / N15, 000 from where it jumped to N21,000. Yesterday, we bought it at N22, 500 and very soon it might hit N25, 000.
“We were buying a carton of wheat at N2,500 but now a carton of wheat is sold at N26, 000 and other inputs. The price of Sugar is N25, 000 as against N15,000 some months ago.
“The price of a carton of butter which we used to buy at the price of N5000 before is now sold at N17, 500. Before now a 25-litre jerrycan of groundnut oil was sold at N15,000 but now it is sold at N31,500 to N33,500.”
Uba further said they used to buy a truckload of firewood for N30,000 adding that now it had gone up to N70,000 and N80,000 as the case may be.
The bakers’ chairman said that they would soon increase the price again to remain in business as the cost of production was going up daily.
He said they were now experiencing reduced demand for bread because most people are no longer willing to buy bread at the new prices.
Uba said that the bakers have also cut the rate of bread production to reduce losses arising from reduced demand for bread.
He said that the bakers knowing the importance of bread to Nigerians have tried to reach the government to help check rising inflation but failed to get them to act.
Uba pleaded with both the Federal and the state governments to take actions that would reduce the cost of bread to enable the poor man to eat bread.
The price of bread, no matter how small it is has added N50 to the old price, a situation many described as disturbing and excruciating.
