Bakers are subject to interruptions in bread supply. Therefore, the product may soon rise in price by 20% due to the rising cost of flour and other components. Yuriy Duchenko, president of the All-Ukrainian Association of Bakers and director of Kyiv Khlib, told the Ministry of Finance, Komersant ukrainskyi
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According to Duchenko, bread prices need to be raised by 15-20%.
“If this does not happen, many bakeries may simply shut down and the country will face bread shortages. Already, a number of companies are on the verge of shutting down, some are switching to a one-shift operation,” he explained.
According to him, in June and July, the main bread producers in Ukraine made either a minus or a zero profit.
Duchenko explained that while in April flour was bought for 10 thousand per tonne, now it costs 15 thousand, and by November the price is expected to reach 16-16.2 thousand.
“Flour prices have increased by 50% over the past few months and continue to rise. Flour accounts for about 40% of the cost of bread. Other raw materials (sugar, sunflower oil, etc.) have risen in price by more than 20% since the beginning of the year. The costs of electricity, logistics, packaging materials, etc. are also rising,” said Duchenko.
According to him, the significant rise in flour prices is due to the limited supply of second-class grain on the domestic market (which is what is used for flour for the baking industry). Many sellers are holding onto grain in anticipation of better prices.
In addition, flour millers are incurring high costs due to power outages, although, for example, bakeries that are critical infrastructure have experienced minimal power outages in July.
It should be noted that economic expert Andriy Novak warned of an inevitable rise in prices for bread and other goods due to the increase in the cost of electricity and fuel in Ukraine.
The Rada approved the fuel excise tax increase in the first reading. The Cabinet of Ministers raised the electricity tariff by 60% at once.