The Union of Bakeries in Lebanon issued a statement stating that “few hours following the issuance of the new bread bundle tariff by the Minister of Economy and Trade yesterday, we were surprised by another decision issued by the Ministry of Energy and Water raising the price of diesel by 4,200 LBP, which considered a main ingredient used for bread production.”

He added, “The Union asks those who claim to preserve the poor’s morsel, how can the bakeries continue in light of the continuous rises in the price of diesel, especially that the rise occurred twice this week?”

The union considered that this method adopted in pricing fuel would negatively affect and raise the price of a bundle of bread, which we want to maintain its prices as a mercy to the poor. Is there an official aware of the seriousness of this issue and put an end to this method? Continuing in this direction may eliminate the ability of people to buy their daily needs of bread.”

The union called on officials to work on establishing a fixed mechanism for fuel prices specifically to bakeries in order to preserve the stability of the price of a bundle of bread and for people with limited income to secure their daily livelihood.

The union stressed that what happened was outside the control of the bakery owners, who are keen to secure a loaf of bread for people at a reasonable and acceptable price, and enable all categories to obtain it.