Simultaneously with the release of the Audit Court’s report on the significant deviation of the Iranian regime in paying bread subsidies and the 1.16 quadrillion toman (approximately $1.933 billion) outstanding debt to wheat farmers, the economic advisor to the Minister of Economy says the price of bread should increase.
The economic advisor to the Minister of Economy, without mentioning the massive government debt to wheat farmers and the deviation in the allocation of bread subsidy resources, only referred to the increased costs of bakers and stated that the price of bread should be adjusted.
Mohammad Jalal, who is also the spokesperson for the government’s smart flour and bread subsidy plan, told ILNA news agency on Sunday, August 4, that the previous administration maintained the price of subsidized flour and bread for three years and did not allow price increases to avoid raising the cost of bread for people, but during this period, rent and wages logically increased.
He further stated, “The concern of bakers for the increase in bread prices is justified.”
Mr. Jalali’s claim about the Thirteenth Government’s prevention of bread price increases comes at a time when the official price of bread has significantly increased over the past three years.
ILNA news agency described Mr. Jalal’s statements as “the siren of bread price increase.”
Also, citing the “concern of bakers” for raising bread prices comes as the new Audit Court report reveals significant government deviation in paying bread subsidies, and the outstanding debt to wheat farmers has peaked at 1.16 quadrillion tomans.
The Audit Court states that the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance has paid more than 950 trillion tomans (approximately $1.583 billion) to the Targeted Subsidies Organization, including 345 trillion rials (approximately $575 million) in 2023, 420 trillion rials (approximately $700 million) for payments to wheat farmers in 2024, and 188 trillion rials (approximately $313.33 million) this year from trust funds and the overall public budget as cash advances for commodity coupons and guaranteed wheat purchases.
The report adds that the Central Bank has also withdrawn 315 trillion tomans (approximately $525 million) from the accounts of executive bodies without following legal procedures and deposited it into the Targeted Subsidies Organization’s account to settle wheat farmers’ claims.
Meanwhile, Ali Gholi Imani, CEO of the National Wheat Farmers Foundation, announced last week that over 9 million tons of wheat produced by farmers have been delivered to the government this year, and the government has paid nearly 540 trillion tomans (approximately $900 million) for wheat purchases, but 1.16 quadrillion tomans (approximately $1.933 billion) of the farmers’ claims remain unpaid.
The status of wheat in Iran
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that Iran’s wheat production this year will not grow compared to last year and will remain at 13.5 million tons, but Iran’s wheat imports will increase by 30 percent to 3 million tons.
It is expected that Iran’s wheat consumption will be 16.5 million tons this year.
Per capita wheat consumption in Iran is slightly more than 162 kilograms per year, which is 2.5 times the global average.
The vast difference in per capita wheat consumption between Iranians and the global average is due to the country’s dietary culture, as bread is one of the main foods in Iranians’ meals. For example, Iranians’ per capita wheat consumption is 4 to 5 times that of citizens of Bangladesh and Myanmar; however, rice consumption of Myanmar and Bangladeshi citizens is also 4 to 5 times that of Iranians.
Another example is the per capita bread consumption of Turkish citizens, which is 27 percent higher than that of Iranians, but rice consumption of Turkish citizens is several times less than that of Iranians, and on the other hand, the per capita meat consumption of Turkish citizens is also 50 percent higher than that of Iranians.
Over the past years, Iranian regime officials, without addressing this issue, have repeatedly accused people of “wasting bread.”
