Despite the promises made by Iranian regime officials that the prices of food will not increase during the month of Ramadan, the state-run ISNA news agency reported how people’s food baskets are becoming smaller by the day.
Fundamental food items purchased more during Ramadan, such as proteins and dairy product, are also seeing price hikes despite large supplies across the country. Prices of chicken, rice, dates, tea, watermelon and … are on the rise and this phenomenon, in general, is causing concerns among the public. There are reports that people are no longer purchasing these goods, considering the fact that they literally don’t have the money.
State-run Pars News website reported that “increasing food item prices prior to Ramadan,” adding “the food market witnessed sudden prices skyrocketing, in some cases a 100% escalation.”
Another state-run website by the name of Khorasan Razavi news agency writes, “The increasing price of the U.S. dollar with respect to the Iranian Rial has impacted the people’s food purchasing power. With the dollar price increase, people’s food baskets are becoming smaller and smaller.
“A store owner in Birjand says during the past few months even the price of salt, once one of the cheapest food items, has increased. Other items such as tomato paste, sugar and sugar cubes, cooking oil and rice, peas, tea, detergents and anything the people need have witnessed a price hike of at least 12 percent.”
Last year during Ramadan people’s food baskets shrank by 61 percent. Such reports cited the Central Bank regarding unprecedented prices of food items even prior to Ramadan. Some sources described last year’s Ramadan food basket as the smallest in Iran’s history.
Increasing food prices and the shrinking of people’s food baskets are not limited to the month of Ramadan.
In fact, people becoming poorer is a process that continues as an ongoing and permanent trend. State-run outlets are reporting people’s food baskets have shrunk by 70 percent during the tenure of Iranian regime president Hassan Rouhani.