No fewer than 500,000 bakery workers may lose their jobs as bakers are planning to shut down following increase in the cost of materials.

The Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria (AMBCN) said over 500,000 workers in the bakery industry may lose their jobs if and when they are forced to shut down their bakeries following the hike in cost of bakery materials.

The chairman of Lagos State branch of AMBCN, Chief Matthew Ayoola, who made this known, said the increase in the price of baking materials by the federal government was a direct threat to the survival of the employers and employees.

According to Ayoola, “A bag of flour rose from N28,000 to N35,000 at the moment and sugar from N37,000, to N43, 000, along with other materials rising in cost, including nylon, butter, improver, preservatives, flavour, and vegetables, and the cost of distributing the bread to the retailers.”

Appealing to the federal government to come to the aid of the sector by reducing the cost of bakery materials, Ayoola disclosed that over 50 members of the association had already shut down their factories because of the unfavourable business environment. He added that the remaining factories that had been struggling to stay in business may be forced to close shop and throw thousands of workers into the labour market.

Though the association has not increases the price of its products despite all the hikes in prices, he said: “but it is high time we let the federal government know what we’re facing as bakers in Nigeria.

“We are appealing to the federal government to, as a matter of urgency, act and seek an immediate solutions to the problem facing us because if we shut down or place more increment on the price of bread, the impact may be too hard, especially in a period like this.”