The Premium Breadmakers Association of Nigeria (PBAN), which represents bakers, has declared plans to stop producing its goods as of Thursday.
Operating a bakery in Nigeria has become nearly impossible, according to a statement issued by the association’s president, Emmanuel Onuorah, because of how severely the industry has been impacted by the constant increases in the cost of diesel and baking supplies.
According to Onuorah, bakeries were losing money, and the situation was no longer manageable.
He claims that bread is basic sustenance that both the rich and the poor can easily grab and eat because it is so inexpensive.
“It, therefore, behoves the Federal Government to be mindful of this and ensure the survival and sustainability of the industry,” he said.
The statement read in part, “In a move to ensure the survival of the premium bread-making industry in Nigeria, we have decided to embark on a withdrawal of services beginning from Thursday 21st of July, 2022 for four days in the first instance and where there is no intervention from the government, we shall escalate the duration of the withdrawal.”
“The reasons for the withdrawal of services included an incessant increase in the price of baking materials, Federal Government’s 15 per cent wheat development levy on wheat import, NAFDAC’s N154,000 penalty charged for late renewal of certificates, the inability of its members to access grants and soft loans being given by the Central Bank of Nigeria to Micro, Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises and multi-agencies regulation of the bread-making industry.”
The statement further read, “Our efforts to ensure the survival of the industry led to a series of meetings with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Abuja with our sister association in the bread-making industry in 2021. Our best attempts through the suggestions we put forward for the survival of the bread-making industry have not yielded the desired result.
“Therefore, the withdrawal of service is the only way we believe we can use to get to Federal Government and Nigerians and let them know our plight and how difficult it has been with the bread-making industry in Nigeria.”
The Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria said last month that it will go on a two-week strike in protest of the soaring costs of baking supplies in a communique that was released and signed by the association’s officials, chaired by Mansur Umar.
