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And it is said that it was the extravagant Queen Marie-Antoinette who sparked the most outrage when she is said to have questioned why those protesting the shortage of bread would not have cake instead!
The people had no bread and could possibly not have cake either so the anger of the people could not have been stoked any stronger.
In Zimbabwe, bread has become the second staple after sadza and the current uncertainty over the price of the bread has made the population uneasy.
Recently the baking industry announced that it was increasing the price of bread by 20 percent to US$1,20 per loaf in response to the increase in the import duty of flour.
Finance Minister Tendai Biti and the Grain Millers’ Association of Zimbabwe denounced the proposed increase.
Minister Biti said the proposed increase would push up inflation. The millers said the surge of wheat price on the world market and the recent upward review in flour import duty by Government did not warrant any increase in the price of the basic commodity.
It is further argued that the bakers buy much of their flour from local millers, who have since absorbed increases in wheat price increases on the world market.
“This is a bad situation because the increase in bread prices makes life unbearable,” said Tariro Mujeki from Ruwa.
“Even the prices of alternatives like rice tend to go up as the shops capitalise on the increase in bread prices. The result will be disastrous,” added the mother of two.
“We thought the increase of the prices of commodities was a thing of the past,” was the rueful remark of one Mr Shereni.
“In this era of low inflation what is the justification for such increases? And what are our farmers doing on the farms?” he questioned.
No wheat, no bread
The root of Zimbabwe’s bread woes is the poor performance of its agriculture industry — in particular wheat production which has been on an incremental down slope.
Some figures show that over the last decade, local producers have managed to produce up to 26 0000 metric tonnes from about 65 000 hectares, with the balance being imported. However, over the past three seasons production has gone down to around             12 000 hectares, yielding about 50 000 metric tonnes.
This season, Government had set a target of 26 000 hectares to be put under wheat production but farmers ended up planting less than 10 000 hectares.
It has been reported that in Mashonaland Central, the majority of wheat farmers had planted less than 10 000 hectares by the end of May with individual growers planting as little as five hectares out of the usual 50 hectares and above. In Mashonaland West, the situation was the same with the province having managed to do less than 15 000 hectares with Manicaland as well as Mashonaland East having done the lowest hectarages.
Last season, authorities set a target of                   70 000 hectares, which, again, could not be met, resulting in farmers managing to grow only 14 100 hectares. About 41 000 tonnes of the crop were harvested against the country’s annual requirement of 400 000 tonnes.
Economists are worried
They attribute the current food price woes to lack of capacity utilisation.
Mr Midway Bhunu, an economist, says the state of pricing should be looked in relation to the value chain beginning from the cost of production.
“The provision issue of inputs in time is critical,” said Mr Bhunu.
“The cost of inputs is also a push factor. For example, the increase in the price of fertiliser at a time when there is a liquidity problem tends to push the prices of food up. The current situation is essentially about demand and supply. As we have to rely on wheat imports, the landing cost may not be viable leading to the increase in prices which is not healthy.
“Bread is a basic commodity and its price should not be allowed to go beyond a particular point,” he explained.
There are some interventions that need to be made to arrest the situation.
“Inputs should be availed on time — say around February and March — for the winter wheat production,” said Mr Bhunu.
“We must also look at encouraging and promoting smallholder irrigation schemes as the reliance on the conventional large farms is not viable at the moment,” he suggested adding that revitalisation of the big irrigation schemes was critical in the long run, coming though as it did, at a cost.
Mr Bhunu said there was also need to make sure that electricity was available for the wheat farmer as the lack of it compromised on the quality of the crop as the wheat would be physiologically compromised.
Mr Bhunu is also worried that there are losses being incurred at the harvesting and post-harvest stages of the wheat production.
“Farmers tend to lose some of the little wheat they harvest that way. Farmers need support and training and capacity building,” he suggested.
The economist said that there was need for a holistic approach in the area of wheat production right up to the market where the commodity should be sold at a viable price to allow farmers to operate profitably in the business.
Zimbabwe could take a leaf from other countries like South Africa where farmers were subsidised yet continued to fetch good prices on the market.
According to the economist, banks could do better in financing wheat production, which they view as high risk crop.
The situation in wheat production, in the broader agricultural sector, could improve if there is policy co-ordination in Government.
Time and again, Finance Minister Tendai Biti has been accused of being reluctant to fund agriculture.