Güler’s ‘bread’ statement: “Should we sell it for free?”

The President of the Samsun Tradesmen and Craftsmen Chamber, Hacı Eyüb Güler, stated that the adjustment of the bread weight was due to costs, saying, “What are we going to do, sell bread for free?”

Starting from August 21 in Samsun, the weight of the 250-gram bread was reduced to 200 grams, while the price remained the same. Hacı Eyüp Güler, the President of the Samsun Tradesmen and Craftsmen Chamber, indicated that the change in bread weight was made due to costs and noted that several provinces had implemented increases a month earlier.

“Price increase was made a month in advance”

Emphasizing that some provinces had made weight adjustments a month in advance, Güler stated, “The same price applies across Turkey, and price increases are made according to costs. Whatever decision Turkey has made, we have made the same decision; in fact, we are the last to increase prices. Other cities increased their prices a month ago; we decided to wait. Ultimately, the price increase is shaped according to our costs. What are we going to do, sell bread for free? Natural gas prices have increased, everything has increased. When costs rise, prices also rise. So, when everything increases, it doesn’t become a problem, but when we raise the price of bread, everyone reacts. It cannot go on like this; bakers also have costs. The price of flour has increased, the price of electricity has increased; we inevitably need to raise the price of bread,” he said.

“Costs are high”

Emphasizing that costs are very high, President Güler stated, “Costs in the country are increasing, worker salaries are increasing, the minimum wage is increasing. When these increase, how will the baker tradesmen make a living? They are inevitably forced to raise the price of bread. To stay afloat, our current costs require this. Provinces like Ordu, Giresun, Trabzon, and Rize have been selling increased-price bread for a month. We thought we would wait a little longer and finally had to do it.”