Georgian Bread Manufacturers Union Head says bread prices not expected to increase
Malkhaz Dolidze, the Head of the Georgian Bread Manufacturers Union, on Tuesday said prices of the product in Georgia were not expected to increase, and added efforts were actually being made to bring them down. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge
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Malkhaz Dolidze, the Head of the Georgian Bread Manufacturers Union, on Tuesday said prices of the product in Georgia were not expected to increase, and added efforts were actually being made to bring them down.
Dolidze told a press briefing the price of a sack of flour had decreased by about ₾10-15 ($3.88-$5.83) compared to the previous year and currently totalled ₾60 ($23.31).
Meetings are being held in order to reduce prices of food products, especially of primary consumption products. There is an expectation that prices on bread will also decrease, but this takes work and time”, he said.
The Union Head also said 800,000 tonnes of flour per year were required for production across the country - a number he said could not be reached by domestic production.
“Unfortunately, we are not wheat producers, we are only consumers. Last year, for the first time, due to the increase in prices, people in Georgia started to produce wheat and harvested 150,000 tonnes. The trend should continue like this”, he added.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday said he had instructed the country’s Economy Ministry to draft a bill to ensure reduction in domestic prices on food and oil.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday criticised oil and food importers in the country for “very high profits” facilitated through prices added to the “real cost” of the products, and instructing several ministers to set up a working group to negotiate a reduction.
The Georgian National Competition Agency on Monday said it had started inspecting four companies in the Georgian pharmaceutical market following “sharp increase” by them in prices of medicines for chronic and oncological illnesses.
Malkhaz Dolidze, the Head of the Georgian Bread Manufacturers Union, on Monday said the price of the product in Georgia is not expected to increase until the end of May, following a recent particle increase.
The National Bank of Georgia on Wednesday said even though inflation was “still high” in the country, the trends were following a “downward trajectory”, with the numbers expected to remain below the “target level” in the second half of the year.
The prices of alcoholic beverages, tobacco, clothing and footwear increased month-on-month in Georgia, while prices of furnishings, household equipment and transport maintenance decreased, the latest inflation data published by the National Statistics Office of Georgia on Monday showed.
Georgian authorities will lift restrictions on export of wheat in advance due to “two to three months” worth of domestic reserves of wheat and flour and expectation of the next harvest in three months’ time, Agriculture Minister Otar Shamugia said on Monday.
The Government of Georgia is imposing a temporary customs duty on import of wheat flour to support increasing the competitiveness of domestic producers and promote their sales on the local market, the Ministry of Agriculture announced on Monday.