As reports continue to highlight chaos in Iran’s food market and the ongoing rise in food prices, Arash Anisian, Director General of Economics and Treatment at the Iranian regime’s Medical Council, stated that many families are forced to consume cheap, high-calorie foods with little to no nutritional value just to stave off hunger.
On Monday, June 2, in a radio interview, Anisian said: “More than 40% of Tehran residents are obese, and a significant portion of this figure is due to an unhealthy lifestyle and unbalanced diet.”
This official from the Medical Council referred to the sharp decline in the consumption of protein, meat, and chicken as a “bitter reality,” adding: “Rising prices and declining purchasing power have forced many families to eliminate or severely limit protein from their meals, and this threatens public health.”
168% Increase in Food Prices During the First Eight Months of Iran’s New Administration
Amid the rising prices of key food items in Iran’s markets, several trade officials have criticized the disorder in supply and the growing number of violations in the food market.
Bahman Danaei, secretary of the Sugar and Sugar Factories Association, announced on Monday, June 2, that sugar prices in Iran have risen by 40%.
He cited factors such as “rising production costs, increased wages, and transportation expenses” as reasons behind the hike in sugar prices.
While Iran’s economy is experiencing a minimum inflation rate of 40%, it is expected that food items would also see price hikes; however, the core economic problems lie in financial imbalance, budget deficits, and government inefficiency.
Meanwhile, media in Iran reported disruptions in the electronic ration coupon system over the past two days, stating that citizens were unable to use their available credits in some chain stores.
In addition to the issue of citizens being unable to access their ration credits, media outlets have also reported on the practice of forced or bundled sales of goods. In this regard, Hamidreza Rastegar, head of the Tehran Chamber of Guilds, stated that such sales are illegal and added that no store or business is allowed to force customers to buy multiple items together.
Reza Kangari, head of the Union of Food Wholesalers, also addressed the gap between official and market prices for cooking oil, stating that the price difference exceeds 80% to 90%. He further added that Indian rice is being sold to consumers at prices 20% higher than the approved rate.
The state-run newspaper Ham-Mihan, in a field report on June 1 titled “They want food but have no money,” wrote about restaurants, cafes, and fast food outlets in Tehran and the rising trend of unpaid tabs and customers skipping bills.
Ham-Mihan quoted the owner of a traditional eatery in central Tehran who said his daily sales had dropped from 200 servings in the winter to 140 servings—a 30% decline.
One part of the report reads: “A young woman and her daughter stood behind the refrigerator at a small eatery on Khayyam Street in Tehran and asked the vendor about the price of a sandwich. One million and two hundred thousand rials (approximately $1.4). The woman reconsidered and walked away without buying.”
The publication of such reports highlights how, with continuously rising inflation and prices, even the most basic meals have become difficult to afford for many citizens in Iran.
Over recent months, numerous reports have been published regarding the worsening economic crisis and the Iranian regime’s inability to curb inflation, which has led to widespread public dissatisfaction.
This comes while Iran is considered one of the richest countries in the world in terms of natural resources, but the regime’s rulers spend all the revenues from oil and other national assets on terrorist interventions and the nuclear bomb project.
