Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 17 /Trend /
A survey of bakers in different parts of Tehran showed bread consumption has declined by half in southern and central parts of the city since the government began the Subsidy Reform Law, Head of Tehran's Traditional Bakeries Union Yousef Ahmadi said, Iran Daily reported.
"Daily per capita flour consumption was 800 kilograms for each bakery in Tehran before the implementation of the Subsidy Reform Law," he said, adding that the figure has declined by half to reach 400 kilograms after the implementation of the law.
According to him, bread consumption has undergone no changes in northern parts of the city because the number of traditional bakeries active in northern parts of the city is not comparable with the population living there.
The targeted subsidy plan, which was launched on Dec. 19, 2010, aims to gradually remove all subsidies over a five-year period and instead give families cash handouts as compensation.
The plan eliminates subsidies on gasoline, natural gas, electricity and food.
Before the implementation of the Subsidy Reform Law, traditional breads - four main types Barbari, Taftoon, Sangak and Lavash - were distributed at unreal prices and a large sum was paid by the government as bread subsidies.
After the implementation of the Subsidy Reform Law, the price of traditional bread has increased threefold on average and is currently distributed at real prices.
According to Deputy Commerce Minister Hamid Alikhani, bread waste has declined significantly after the implementation of Subsidy Reform Law in the country.
"Bread waste has declined by 20 percent in the last 50 days, reaching its lowest point compared to last years," he said last week.
Alikhani noted that before the implementation of Subsidy Reform Law, the rate of bread waste was about 30 percent.
The low price of bread, before the implementation of Subsidy Law Reform, was the most important factor behind the high bread waste in the country.