Tag: bread

Why price of bread is skyrocketing – Bakers

Premium Bread Makers Association of Nigeria (PBAN) has given reasons why the price of bread continues to rise in the country, despite appreciation of the Naira against the Dollar.

The President of PBAN, Emmanual Onuorah made the reasons known during a presentation on Arise News’ Global Business Report on Tuesday.

Onuorah explained that the 15 per cent Wheat Development Levy by the federal government on bread and the cost of other inputs are responsible for the high cost of the commodity.

The price of a loaf of bread rose to around N2,000 in February after bakers reported an increase in a bag of flour from N37,000 to N42,000 and sugar from N62,000 to N72,000.

The Naira has gained against the Dollar from N1,700 in February to nearly N1,000 in April.

Onuorah explained that wheat constitutes 60 to 65 percent of bread, which he said is imported from Ukraine, Russia, and other parts of the world.

“Since this crisis (Russia/Ukraine war) started about three years ago, it has led to an upending of our pricing structure regarding wheat. As a country Nigeria produces, we can grow wheat in 15 states,” he said.

The PBAN president said bread makers pay a 15 per cent Wheat Development Levy, which he stressed is transferred to the final consumers.

“For instance, they (federal government) take 15 percent for every bread that you eat, for every flour that we buy, 15 percent of it is taken for wheat development level.

“Cumulatively, the duty on wheat is 30 per cent and 15 per cent Wheat Development Levy that Jonathan initiated in June 2012 and was supposed to be adopted as a stopgap. But it’s still there till today.

“They are supposed to use it for R&D and all of it. But it’s still the same thing, redoing corruption and all that. We are not getting the benefit of that.

“And that’s why we’ve been asking the government to remove this thing, and place a moratorium on wheat imports since Nigerians are hungry.

“So, we’ll keep pushing on the pressure. That’s why we are a pressure group. And we must use our platform to ensure that Nigerians also get cheap bread,” Onuorah said.

He also said the cost of diesel, electricity bills and other inputs are responsible for the price increase.

April 17, 2024
How bread has become a luxury staple food

With the continuous increase in the price of bread, many residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) say they are struggling to keep up with the cost of the staple food.

The residents, who spoke in Abuja on Sunday and pleaded for the government’s intervention, expressed concern that bread is slowly becoming a luxury item rather than a basic necessity.

The latest National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Food Price Report for February 2024 said the average price of 500g sliced bread increased by 89.48 per cent on a year-on-year basis from N553.03 recorded in February 2023 to N1,047.86 in February 2024.

While the report said on a month-on-month basis, 500g sliced bread increased by 15.91 per cent from N904.02 recorded in January 2024.

Mr Sumaila Yusuf, a civil servant, said it had become difficult to buy bread because of the increase in price .

“It has been tough buying and consuming bread these days.

“As a matter of fact, bread is now treated on the list of special foods that we go for occasionally and it is no longer a routine item that must be on the shelf at all times.

“Sometimes I ponder on why I should keep consuming bread with an almost daily increase in the prices of loaves.

“I can recall that this time last year, I was buying Imperial Bread for N800 but it was sold for N1400 about a month ago when I last bought it.

“Also, Delight Bread small loaf was N600 but it is now N1, 200. I can go on and on. The government really needs to intervene and help regulate the price,” he told NAN.

Mrs Biodun Ajakaiye, a businesswoman, said the increase in the price of bread had led to a reduction in its consumption in her house.

“I used to buy two family loaves for my family of six and we used to eat bread twice a week but with the increase we now eat bread once a month.

“The last bread I bought was N1, 700. So two loaves for my family will be N3400. How can we spend that amount on only bread twice a week?

“We just had to advise ourselves and replace eating bread with Akamu and Akara,” she said.

Mrs Ella Anyanwu, a civil servant, said the increase in bread price had affected her family’s consumption of it.

Anyanwu also said in spite of the increase, the quantity and quality of some bread had reduced and she called on the government to intervene.

“The price of bread increases geometrically and the quality and quantity also reduce daily. Some are not properly baked due to the high cost of baking items hence they spoil easily.

“A loaf of bread that was being sold between N950 to N1,000 early this year, increased to N1,300 then to N1,600 currently making affordability very difficult because one needs to buy like three loaves to meet the needs of my family.

“If bread that is a common food for a common man can be so expensive, how can Nigerians survive in this harsh economic situation?

“Therefore, the government should endeavor to look into the cause of its increasing cost as well as other food items and intervene to cushion the effect,” she said.

A trader, Musa Ahmed, said he still ate bread but went for the smaller sizes because of the price increase.

According to him, I used to buy a loaf of N500 bread but it is now N1,000, so I now buy the N400 loaf which used to be N300, and manage myself.

Peace Samuel, a manager of one of the big bakeries in Abuja, attributed the increasing cost of bread to several factors, including the Ukraine war, foreign exchange increase, and inflation in the country.

“Two to three months ago, our 900g family loaf was supplied to distributors at a rate of N930, while it was sold to final consumers at N1,100.

“But presently, the same loaf is supplied to distributors at N1,100 and sold to final consumers at N1,300.

“Similarly, the 1,200g Jumbo loaf that was sold to final consumers at N1,200 is now being sold for N1,600.”

Samuel, however, said in spite of the drop in dollar, the cost of raw materials such as flour and others used to make bread was still on the rise.

“As of March 22, the price of flour has witnessed another increase of between N1,500 to N2,000, depending on the brand.

“This continuous surge in prices has led to many bakeries shutting down.”

She also said that suppliers sometimes create artificial scarcity and increase prices, knowing that customers have no choice but to buy.

According to her, this is harming the bakery business, and many people are losing their jobs.

Samuel recalled how the government’s intervention helped with the reduction in prices of flour when the Master Bakers Association went on a nationwide strike in February.

“When we went on the strike, the government intervened to an extent and the price of 50kg flour was reduced immediately from N55,000 to N50,000.

“However, the price has gone up again, ranging from N53,500 to N57,000, depending on the brand.

“The government needs to understand that the continuous rise in the cost of bread is creating a ripple effect that is affecting the entire economy, therefore, the government really needs to intervene,” she said.

March 24, 2024
Hardship: Church opens bakery to support members with ‘daily bread’

The Shepherd House Assembly International has launched its Shepherd’s Sure Bread to assist the indigents in the Church and other communities.

The facility was launched at the Church premises in Abuja on Sunday.

Speaking at the event, the Project Director, Rev. Jackie Talena, said that the aim was to help the church generate resources to provide welfare for its members and other less privileged people in the society.

The director said that the project was part of the church’s vision of `reaching the unreached in the society’ and spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.

“Though this is a business venture, the proceeds of the bread will be used to actualise the vision of the ministry.

“This is through welfare and support for the less privileged and by generating resources to organise our outreaches, crusades and programmes in the church,” she said.

Talena, who is also the wife of the senior pastor of the church, said that the business would be used as a platform to train members in the skill of baking and also in building their business skills.

She added that the skills would also empower them to be financially stable, especially with the rising cost of living in the country.

She thanked Rev Joshua Talena, the Senior Pastor of the church, for the quality investment and other sacrifices to ensure the success of establishing the bakery.

Talena urged the church members and other residents of Abuja to patronise the bread.

On her part, the Coordinator for the bakery, Mrs Akon Etuk, said that it successfully passed through all the due process and requirements of the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

“A certificate of listing has been granted in that regard. We are positioned to ensure the standard, the processes, hygiene and quality of this brand is maintained at all times.

“We will always consider our consumers first in our practices and also offer the best prices possible,” she said.

She urged the government to assist small-scale businesses such as the church’s bread bakery to enable them survive.

“The brand we are introducing to Nigerians today is a wholesome pack of goodness, health and vitality,” she said.

March 3, 2024
HEAVY ‘WAHALA’! Master bakers set to begin nationwide strike

Hunger in Nigeria may wear a new face as Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria has said it would withdraw its service nationwide from February 27, should the Federal government refuse to implement the agreement it entered into with the association in 2020.

It called for the immediate implementation of financial support palliatives for bakers as promised by the Federal Government as post COVID-19 support programmes for Small and Medium Enterprises for bakers who have lost over 40 per cent of their membership and still counting.

It further called for the suspension of all forms of taxation on the bakery industry for now at the federal, state and local government levels.

A statement from the National President of AMBCON, Alhaji Mansur Umar, read on his behalf by the Kogi State Chairman of the association, Chief Gabriel Adeniyi, on Tuesday, noted that the decision to withdraw its services was due to the “multifarious increase in the prices of baking materials such as flour, sugar, yeast, vegetable oil, petrol, diesel all occasioned by subsidy removal and forex deregulation.”

The association said, “Multiple taxations from several federal, state, local government agencies fees and levies, hike in business activities in Nigeria are also some of the reasons for the impending strike action.”

The statement partly read, “The Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria have critically accessed the state of our business operation, consequently demand the liberalisation of flour and sugar importation, reduction or total removal of import duties on major baking materials such as flour, sugar, butter, yeast etc as applicable to other commodities as have recently been done by the federal government and Provision of concessionary forex exchange to flour millers and other stakeholders as well as reduction of tariff on imported wheat and sugar.”

Other demands outlined by the association include the development of cultivation and processing of wheat and sugar cane in Nigeria, and the removal of multiple taxations at all government levels.

The association also called for the setting up of a price control and monitoring committee as allowed by the constitution as amended and other conditions that will enhance the ease of doing business in the country.

February 13, 2024
Husband allegedly murders mother of five over loaf of bread

Awka in Anambra state wore a sombre look as a woman identified as Ogochukwu Anene has been allegedly beaten to death by her husband over a loaf of bread.

A source revealed that “her name is Ogochukwu Anene from Umuokpu village Awka. She was married to one Mr Ndubisi Wilson Uwadiegwu from Enugu state.

“She was beaten to death by her husband who is currently planning to bury her without informing her people properly.”

According to the source, Ogo was blessed with five children, 4 boys and a girl. The first son who is 14 years of age said the father use mirror and beat the mom, because the mom asked him to buy bread for them and he said he has no money.

So when their mom used her money and bought one loaf of bread, the father went to the kitchen and finished the whole bread.

January 7, 2023
Bakers lament cost of producing bread, ask govt. for subsidy

Master Bakers Association on Thursday called on the Federal Government to subsidise the cost of cassava flour to encourage members produce bread and other confectionery with the flour without incurring losses.

The Chairman of the association in Rivers, Dr Chidi Orlu, made the call in Port Harcourt during a capacity building development for master bakers in the state on the use of high quality cassava flour for baking bread and other confectionery.

The programme was organised by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD).

Orlu said the current cost of cassava flour in the country had discouraged bread production with the flour and posed a serious challenge to government’s effort towards stopping wheat importation for bread making.

He said that it was cheaper to produce bread and other confectionery using wheat flour than to produce them with cassava flour, pointing out that garri and cassava flour were made from the same raw material.

“For instance, you need 2.5kg of butter to produce good bread with 50kg of cassava flour while about 500g of butter can be used to produce bread with 50kg of wheat flour.

“Inflation is now so high. Where do we get high quality cassava flour and if available, at what rate?

“If bakers decide to use cassava flour, the demand for cassava will be massive and that will make it difficult for some farmers to meet the demand from bakers.

“All over the world, when you start a project of this nature the desire may not be achieved at the begining; it’s something you get in the long run,” he said.

Earlier in a keynote address, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mohammad Abubakar, said the agriculture policy of government was poised to build agribusiness ecosystem that would address the challenges in the agricultural sector.

The minister, represented by the South-South Zonal Director, FMARD, Mr Michael Brooks, said promotion and adoption of 20 per cent cassava flour in bread and confectionery to reduce wheat importation had been on.

Abubakar said the government programme had the potential to generate mass employment, save the country billions of naira wheat importation daily and eliminate hunger, among others.

“However, the cassava inclusion policy implementation has failed to acheive desired objectives of master bakers’ demand for cassava flour due to certain challenges which stakeholders are trying to address at present,” he said.

Highlights of the event included training of participating bakers in cassava flour bread production by the resource person, Mr Ganiyu Kehinde, a pastry chef.

One of the participants, Mr Hilary Nwanajuo, commended the ministry for organising the training, saying it had enriched their knowledge of baking bread with cassava flour.

He also noted that the high cost of high quality cassava flour had posed a serious challenge to the industry and urged government to do something to bring donw the cost of the product.

November 25, 2022
Abuja residents lament, appeal to Buhari over cost of bread; seek alternatives

Some residents of the Federal Capital Territory have begun consuming food that serves as alternatives to bread, following the continuous increase in the price of the everyday use commodity.

Many of them have also been complaining over the price increase itself while appealing to the Federal Government to address the challenges facing bakers in the country.

Some of the residents in Abuja said that the recurring increase in the price of bread has deprived a lot of families of the opportunity of eating it at will.

Mrs Esther Oluniyi, a mother of four and civil servant said bread used to be the only affordable and available ready-to-eat food for most Nigerian households.

Oluniyi added that with the recent increase in the price of bread, it has now become an unaffordable and unavailable food item on every family’s table.

“The bread I used to buy for N500 about two months ago is now N700 to N800.

“Before, I used to buy two to three loaves per day, but now I can only afford four loaves per week, which means our consumption of bread has reduced and the business for the seller is dying.

“I have replaced bread with yam and egg, pap and akara,” she said.

Oluniyi however appealed to the government to look into the cost of bread and find a lasting solution.

Mrs Sukanmi Johnson, a mother of three, also a civil servant, said a lot of families now have alternatives to bread due to the recent increase in the price of bread.

“I now have an alternative to bread for me and my children. Instead of buying bread everyday, we now rotate it with potato, yam, pap, spaghetti and other types of food,” Johnson said.

She said it would be good for the government to assist farmers to cultivate wheat in Nigeria so Nigeria would not depend on other countries for wheat importation.

“I believe that the earlier we start eating what we grow and grow what we eat, the better it would be for the country.

“I know that it was the recent increase in the price of raw materials for bread production that made the price of bread to increase.

“So, there is need for the government to help manufacturers reduce cost of production,” Johnson said.

Bisi Divine-Grace, a seven year old pupil said the recent increase in the price of bread has forced her parents to reduce the number of loaves they eat per day.

“We now take three slices of bread for breakfast instead five to six that we normally eat.

“If you want to take more than three slices, mummy will be shouting bread is now expensive o,”
Divine-Grace said.

Ms Peace Okhuasogie, the Manager of Nextar Bakery said the recent increase in the price of bread has affected bakers’ production level negatively nationwide.

According to Okhuasogie, because of the increase, most bakeries in the FCT have been forced to close down.

“And the ones that are not closed down are struggling to continue production,” she said.

Okhuasogie however appealed to the government and other private sector stakeholders to intervene urgently in the sector which she said “is about to collapse”.

July 3, 2022
Over 40 bakeries shutdown in FCT over cost of production

No fewer than 40 bakeries have closed shop in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), over cost of production and multiple taxation and hike in electricity tariff, among others.

Some of the bakeries visited were not opened for business due to operational cost and multiple taxation by some government agencies.

Some of the bakeries that have closed shops are Abumme bakery Ltd. Lugbe, Airports road; Hamdala Bakery, Kuje; Harmony Bite Bakery, Karu, and Doweey Delight Bakery Ltd, Kubwa.

Others include Merit Baker, Mpape; Funez Baker, Orozo; Slyz Bakery, Wuse Zone 2, and others.

Mr Ishaq Abdulraheem, the Chairman, Abuja Master Bakers, FCT said that it was becoming increasingly disturbing that bakeries in Abuja could no longer cope with the high cost of production.

He said that most members had lost their means of livelihood, while workers had been out of job due to the shutdown.

He called on the Federal Government to quickly intervene and check agencies of government frustrating bakery business.

He identified some of the agencies to include the National Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), National Environmental Standards and Regulations, and Enforcement Agency (NESREA).

He said that the six Area Councils in FCT had also made business very unpleasant and difficult for bakeries with huge taxes and tenement rates.

An Abuja baker, Mr Nuhu Musa of Hamdala Bakery, Kuje, FCT appealed to the government to regulate the activities of these agencies to reduce the different taxes they imposed on bakers.

Musa said many bakeries were struggling to survive due to the high cost of production.

“We want government to regulate these agencies so that our production process will be easy.

“These taxations are negatively impacting our business to the extent that many of us have closed down.

“This is also affecting employment as many bakery workers are out of work presently and you know the effect of that on the society; some will turn to criminality,’’ he said.

Musa said, for instance, NAFDAC will come to their bakeries to check for certificates, while SON will come for the registration of the product.

“How much are we making to warrant all these checking and payments,’’ he said.

Some of the Abuja residents who spoke with NAN decried the high cost of bread in the market, stressing that bread was gradually becoming the food for the rich.

Mr Julius Anthony, a resident said that some of the bread he usually bought for N500 per loaf now cost as much as N1,000.

Miss Aisha Danjuma, another resident of FCT called on the government to immediately intervene over the high cost of bread, adding that “bread is the food for the masses and must not be taken away from them.’’

July 1, 2022
How I made N70,000 daily supplying bread to bandits, their victims in Kaduna – Baker

A syndicate allegedly supplying drugs, bread and other food items to bandits operating in Zaria, Kaduna State and its environs has been smashed by operatives of the FIB Intelligence Response Team (FIB-IRT).

An alleged member of the syndicate, who admitted to making about N150,000 weekly from supplying bread to the bandits, said his income from the venture rose sharply at a point to N70,000 a day while some university students abducted in Kaduna were in their custody.

A police source, who said the suspects would be charged with criminal conspiracy and kidnapping, revealed that the syndicate was busted by the team of FIB-IRT at the Rigachikun base after supplying bread to the bandits in their hideout in the forest at about 5pm on June 8, based on reliable information.

Among the arrested suspects were Abubakar Ibrahim a.k.a Abu Rewire of Kuregu village in Wasasa Zaria; Auwal Abubakar of Zaria City; Hassan Magaji of Galadimawa village and Ibrahim Kabiru a.k.a. Abba of Galadimawa village.

On interrogation, the suspects confessed to being the ones supplying bread to the bandits at Galadimawa, Damari, Kidandan and Awala camps in Birnin Gwari and Giwa local government areas, Kaduna State.

The suspects were said to have led the detectives to their factory where 150 loaves of bread were recovered.

In his confessional statement, Auwal Abubakar, was said to have admitted that the syndicate was giving information to bandits on account of which they carried out kidnapping and cattle rustling in the Zaria axis.

Hassan, a native of Galadimawa village who is married with two wives and three children, said: “I started the bakery business in 2018. Before then, I was an okada (commercial motorcycle) rider, but I was always losing them to bandits who sometimes ambushed us.

“Some time ago, one of my relatives, Mustafa Magaji, came to our area and taught me how to operate a bakery, and with the little money I had saved, I started the business.

“I started with about N21,000 and now make about N400,000 a month. The boom in my business began when I started supplying bread to bandits.

“I was born and brought up here in Galadimawa, and I know most of our young men who decided to become bandits.

“Initially I was going around the area to sell bread in small quantities. That was when I met one Mohammed from Galadimawa.

“The community has a good relationship with them because they do not attack us. Initially, they were raiding our villages, but some of our community heads made them understand that we were not the cause of their problem; that we are poor villagers also struggling to survive. That was why they stopped attacking us and most of them started coming out to mix with the villagers.

“I normally stay close to the part of the forest where they are camped. It was during one of such movement in 2019 that I met Mohammed and he bought 10 loaves of bread and took my phone number. I sold the bread for N200 each instead of the regular market price, which was N170. The next day, he called me, saying that the bread was so sweet and asked me to bring 20 more loaves.

“The day I took the 20 loaves to him, I saw him with three others and they told me that they would like to be buying in larger quantities, but I told them that I did not have enough cash. We agreed that they would pay the entire money before I bake.

“They started with N20,000 worth of bread and gradually increased it to N50,000 a day. After removing the cost of the ingredients, I make as much as N150,000 in a week.

“We had a meeting point close to their hideout in the forest, but I was not allowed to enter the bush. It is not even accessible by car, so I had to stop there and share the bread to those that contributed money.

“They never threatened me because I minded my business. They know that people are avoiding them; that was why they normally encouraged me by paying for the bread before I baked it. So, I do not know about their kidnap business; I only sell my bread and leave.

“It was my workers that were arrested by the police while they were on their way to delivering bread, and they brought them to my factory.”

Hassan said he observed that whenever the bandits kidnapped a lot of people like they did some university students in Kaduna, the quantity of bread they bought would increase.

“During that period, I supplied up to N70,000 worth of bread every day till recently when it dropped to about N50,000,” he said.

Since December last year, armed men have attacked many schools and universities in the Northwest, abducting more than 700 students. Among those abducted were about 20 students of Greenfield University in Kaduna kidnapped on April 20, about one month after attackers stormed a forestry college in the same city, seizing dozens of students.

The abducted students of the university spent as many as 40 days before they were released after their parents had paid heavy sums as ransoms.

Hassan, however, said there was not much he had done with the money other than marrying a woman “I had always loved. And I was able to save money to take care of my two wives.”

Another suspect, Abubakar from Galadimawa, said: “I am married with a daughter. I only attended Arabic school. I am a farmer, and while we are waiting for the crops to grow, I normally look for other sources of making money for my family.

“I started working for Magaji about three months ago. I am paid N500 and a loaf of bread every day. My job is to join and bake the bread and also sell them in the various communities.

“Most of our bread was sold to bandits. I know that they are bandits. Everyone knows them. I did not fear that they would kidnap me because we minded our business.

“They don’t cover their faces. We know their villages. The only thing is that they now live in the forest.

“They have no families. It is only some of their commanders that are married with children.

“I do not know that it is a crime to sell. I am only selling my wares and nothing more. I am aware that they are kidnapping people up and down, but since I did not participate in it, I never cared to know whether what they were doing was right or not.

“There was never any need for me to worry. It was at the police station that they told me that I was encouraging them by giving them food.”

He said the only way to stop banditry was for the government to give them what they want. “They are so many in the bush, and the more you kill them, the more they recruit.

“I did not join them because of my family. My relatives had warned me that one day, the army would bomb the place and I would die.”

The third suspect, Ibrahim, a 17-year-old indigene of Galadimawa, said: “I dropped out of Galadimawa Primary School. My parents are farmers and they made me join them in the farm instead of sending me to school.

“I have been saving money to buy a motorcycle to start a commercial motorcycle business, but I could not save enough money. Luckily, I got a job at Magaji local bakery about a year ago.

“I am paid N500 and a loaf of bread daily. Sometimes I would sell the bread instead of eating it.

“Part of my job is to sell it in the neighbouring communities every day. The bandits are our best customers. Instead of trekking around and begging people to buy bread, we just deliver everything to them and go home.

“I am not a bandit because if I try it, my father will hunt me down and hand me over to the police. He has warned me that those bandits kill innocent people, which is wrong.

“I know a lot of them who have since relocated into the forest. They only come out when they have money; to look for girls and visit their families.”

June 19, 2021
Kogi Govt queries permanent secretary over bread levy saga

The Kogi Government has issued a query to Mr Usman Ibrahim, the Permanent Secretary in the state’s Ministry of Commerce for his alleged role in the bread levy saga in the state.

On Nov. 9, the Kogi State Ministry of Commerce and Industry wrote to the chairman of the state’s branch of the Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria (AMBCN), introducing a company to collect a so called bread levy from members of the association.

The development sparked an outrage nationwide, prompting the State Government to deny the introduction of the levy.

The state’s Head of Service, Mrs Deborah Ogunmola, issued the query letter to Ibrahim in Lokoja on Tuesday.

Ogunmola in the letter, dated Nov. 17, said that Ibrahim had on Nov. 9, signed and addressed a letter to the state’s branch chairman of AMBCN on the subject of introducing an identified consulting company.

According to her, the letter also touches on payment of levies on bread by all bakers and caterers doing business in and across the state.

Ogunmola accused the permanent secretary of acting without due approval of the state’s commissioner of commerce and industry.

She said that the permanent secretary had also failed to provide a file documenting the approval for the dissemination of such information.

The head of service directed the permanent secretary to answer the query within 24 hours and explain why disciplinary action should not be taken against him.

The letter said that Ibrahim’s action contravened the provisions of Public Service Rules, Section 4 – 030402 (1), (N) and (O), which may lead to his dismissal from service.

November 17, 2020