In an announcement made yesterday, Wednesday 13 November, the country’s bakeries announced they would postpone the RD$2 increase in the price of bread until next January. The increase would have gone into effect on Monday, 18 November but the members of the Union of Medium and Small Bakers accepted a deal offered by Administrative Minister Jose Ramon Peralta on behalf of the government. Bakers’ Union spokesman Francisco Capellan told Diario Libre that the authorities would provide compensation for valued-added tax (ITBIS) payments on yeast, sugar, butter, flour and other materials used in the bakeries.
In addition, the government will acquire 600,000 “teleras” (a special type of bread roll associated with Christmas) in December at a cost of RD$30 million. Also as part of the deal, the government will provide them with tax printers and RD$800 million in financing for restructuring the ovens used in the bakeries.
At the same time, Capellan made it clear that the agreement is subject to a new meeting that the parties will hold at the Presidential Palace tomorrow, Friday 15 November. He recalled that products like sugar, salt and yeast used to be tax-exempt, but now they are taxed, which he said was affecting the competitiveness of the sector.