The President of the All Ceylon Bakery Owners’ Association (ACBOA), N.K. Jayawardena, assured the public yesterday that there will be no shortage of cakes and Christmas treats during the festive season.
Unlike last December, when supply issues affected the market, Jayawardena said that all essential ingredients for cake-making — flour, margarine, sugar, and eggs are freely available. “There will be no issue with cake production this year,” he said.
When asked if the Association had any good news for consumers, such as lower prices for cakes and other bakery products for the festive season, Jayawardena said that price reductions would be possible only if the Government took action to reduce the costs of key ingredients such as eggs, flour, margarine, and sugar. ACBOA Coordinating Secretary Anil Hettiarachchi said that cakes would be sold between Rs. 750 to Rs. 1,250, depending on the quality. He said that the cost of margarine is currently between Rs. 18,000 and Rs. 20,000 for a 20 kg pack, while the price of wheat flour is around Rs. 300 per kilogram. The cost of an egg is between Rs. 35 to Rs. 40.
He said that there is a likelihood of egg prices rising to between Rs. 45 and Rs. 50 each due to the increasing demand this month.
Hettiarachchi said the Association has to pay Rs. 170 in Value Added Tax (VAT) along with other taxes for every kilogram of cake produced.
