After gas, oil and pasta, inflation is also hitting another product: bread rolls. A mixture of the effects of the pandemic and the currently soaring prices for raw materials and energy is driving up costs for bakers. As a result, a simple Kaiser roll may soon cost more than one euro in Germany.
Massive price increases – not only for raw materials
The current inflation is also affecting bakers. Since their raw materials and energy costs are rising sharply, there is a risk of higher baking costs. While bread prices are already rising, the first voices are talking about buns that could soon cost more than one euro – and there are many reasons for this.
First of all, raw materials have become much more expensive for bakers. In the case of grain, there is a price increase of more than a third (34.4%) – according to data from the Federal Statistical Office. For sugar, there is even talk of a price increase of more than 40 percent compared to the previous year.
The head of the Berlin Bakers’ Guild, Johannes Kamm, reports that ingredients such as raisins, almonds and pumpkin seeds from abroad are also becoming more expensive. “Transportation costs have increased tenfold,” – he said in an interview with “B.Z.”
Will we soon face a price shock in the bakery?
Rising energy prices are also having a big impact on bakers. The gas and electricity that bakers use to operate their ovens have become much more expensive, and with high prices at gas stations, the cost of a car is also getting more expensive.
This alone is already driving up the price of baked goods. For example, in Berlin from 30 to 33 cents, in Münsterland from 40 to 45 cents. Even for white bread (plus 5%) and toast (plus 10%), prices have already risen compared to 2020. – And no end is in sight so far.
The consequence is a warning issued by the “Bäckerzeitung” that is likely to shock many people: if companies were to pass on all the costs they currently incur to consumers, rolls “would soon have to cost much more than one euro.” Many companies are also still feeling the effects of the coronavirus pandemic – combined with the current rise in raw material and energy prices, many bakers’ livelihoods are at risk.
Source: www.focus.de