Reports of Bread Purchase Restrictions in Iran and 'Black Market for Flour'; 'No One is Accountable'

Following official reports of restrictions on bread purchases limited to 'four loaves with one bank card', the head of the Traditional Bakers Union of Tehran denied this issue. The state-run news agency IRNA reported on Tuesday, January 9, that 'recently some bakeries have announced that according to a directive from the Bakers Union, purchasing more than four loaves with one bank card is prohibited for citizens, and to buy more than four loaves, two bank cards must be used.' This government media claimed that this action was due to the belief of 'some bakers' that 'using multiple bank cards would allow them to receive a larger flour quota.' The media also stated that 'this issue occurred following the black market for flour and bread which had led to some profiteering,' and that 'the low price of bread in the country' has caused some to sell bread as 'dry bread' at several times the price to livestock farms. According to this report, following this action, in several provinces, the Bakers Union has imposed 'restrictions on bread purchases,' causing people to either visit bakeries multiple times for their daily sustenance or carry two bank cards. While the Islamic Republic News Agency announced that 'the Traditional and Sangak Bakers Union' did not 'deny this news' and 'no one was held accountable,' the Tasnim news agency quoted Fatemeh Nazari, head of the Traditional Bakers Union of Tehran, denying the sale of more than four loaves with one bank card and claiming: 'There is no restriction on the purchase of various traditional breads.' Nazari asserted: 'The bakers' unions have not issued any directives or announcements to their members regarding bread purchases, nor have we received any directives or announcements from the government or the Chamber of Guilds.' Previously, Navid Jamshidi, a journalist and economic analyst on social media platform X, warned about the 'normalization of corruption in business' and wrote that 'currently in Iran, the price of each kilogram of fresh traditional bread is about half the price of the dried version of the same bread,' with the main reasons for this issue being 'controlled pricing, the replacement of dry bread for healthy livestock feed, multiple pricing of flour,' and mismanagement. He considered this issue an 'economic disaster' that would lead to consequences including 'the normalization of corruption in business, the disappearance of jobs related to bakeries, declining bread quality, declining quality of livestock products, and anger from producers and consumers due to long queues, poor customer service, low quality and underweight sales, bankruptcy of bakers, and confrontations with inspectors.'