KOLKATA: Major bread manufacturers in Kolkata and Howrah have revised the price of regular white bread loaf from Rs 24 to Rs 28, citing hike in input costs including fuel. The last time bread price was hiked was four years ago in 2018. Then, too, the MRP of bread had gone up by Rs 4.
“The price of refined flour, edible oil and fuel have gone up in the past four years. The margins have been under tremendous pressure for the last couple of years. We would have actually revised prices last year but did not do so, keeping the pandemic in mind. But we have been forced to do so now to cover the losses,” said an official of Modern Breads, the largest supplier in Kolkata.
Apart from Modern, Moreish Foods, Britannia, Metro Gold, Barron, Mother, Anurag, Subhnarayan and Bajaj — all mechanized bread manufacturers — have hiked the price of bread across categories. Moreish Foods assistant vice-president (sales & distribution) Sasi Panda said cost of flour had gone up by 32%, edible oil by 100% and fuel by 120% in the last couple of years. “Around 40% of the hike will also go into commission that has also increased,” he said.
Despite the hike, the price of regular white bread remains the lowest in Kolkata among cities in the east.
