Article Courtesy of Viory.Video
A French bakery owner warned of a ‘tsunami in the making’ as rising energy costs threatened some iconic staples – baguettes and croissants.
“In February, I was paying 0.98 cents per litre, and now it’s 1.85 euros, so that’s almost a 100% increase. That makes a refill around 3,800 euros instead of 2,500 euros,” revealed Frederic Gauthier, as he showed the film crew his small bakery operation, with loaves and other baked goods being prepared.
He also took aim at those at the top – asking why Macron and his top officials didn’t take action.
“Why can’t we lower taxes in France? Spain, Portugal, and other European countries are doing it. It would cost us a little less, and everyone would still have greater purchasing power,” he said.
Gauthier said that he’d tried to soak up the costs – but could be forced to hike prices and thought some customers just wouldn’t pay them.
“We might raise the price of a traditional baguette by 10 or 5 cents, and a croissant or a small pastry by 5 or 10 cents here and there – that’ll cover the bill,” he said. “But if we keep doing this, customers notice the price hikes right away.”
“They come in with €1.30 in their pocket to pay for a baguette… we tell them it’s €1.40 now, they say they don’t have enough and walk away—and the next day, they don’t show up,” he added. Some estimates suggest a baguette could hit a record high of €1.60 by the end of next month.
Gauthier even revealed he’d been forced to take a pay cut – paying himself a salary every other month- to stay afloat: “it’s not just me, it’s young people learning the trade; we have to make them want to do it. There are employees, so that means families.”
But what of his current customers? One said she was worried about price hikes, while another said she hoped the price wouldn’t soar because “everything’s getting more expensive these days.”
Since the Iran war began nearly four weeks ago, diesel prices in France have jumped by roughly 30 per cent, with flour milling companies also adding emergency surcharges on top. The French government has brought in short-term, state-backed loans, primarily for farmers, saying it could help with the ‘liquidity crisis’.
Article and Video Courtesy of Viory.Video
