Bakers protest in Paris over surging energy costs

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Bakers in Paris launched massive rallies on Monday to protest the rising cost of energy which they say is threatening the bakery industry.

"We feel like there's a huge injustice," said Sylvie Leduc, one of the protesters, to reporters. "We know how to run a business, that's not a problem, but we're faced with increases that are just impossible to pass on to customers."  

« Bercy on arrive ! » manifestation des artisans boulangers en direction du Ministère de l'économie contre l'explosion des prix de l'énergie (@LucAuffret) #boulangers pic.twitter.com/effDxvEhZV

— Anonyme Citoyen (@AnonymeCitoyen) January 23, 2023

Just like many other countries across the continent, Russian sanctions have caused the entire bloc to experience a surge in prices since Russia ceased to deliver gas. 

Adding this to the effects of the pandemic that hit global supply chains, this results in an increase in the cost of raw materials such as butter and flour which are essential for bakers and artisans. 

The price of eggs has also increased because of a recent outbreak of bird flu which has spread across most French farms. 

The outrage was mainly sparked by energy suppliers asking for monthly payments from bakers above reasonable levels. 

"Thirty years of being a baker and it's going to finish like this? I could never have imagined it," said Leduc's husband Jean-Philippe, whose bill had increased six-fold in January.

"We don't want hand-outs, we just want to be able to live from our work."  

« Boulangers en danger ! Boulangers en danger ! »

La manifestation des #boulangers est partie de la place de la Nation. pic.twitter.com/BXlm5W4GbG

— L'insoumission (@L_insoumission) January 23, 2023

What particularly stings the French are the fact that French bread serves as a symbol of the national way of life.

President Emmanuel Macron reportedly has recently sought to support small business owners and welcomed bakers on January 6 to express his support for the industry.

He further spoke of various schemes that could decrease electricity bills by 40% for eligible businesses.

But several protesters stated that these schemes were either too complicated or too slow to deliver needed assistance. 

They also exclude smaller bakeries that employ lesser than 12 employees, for instance. 

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Since January 19, trade unions have been carrying out massive strikes to protest the pension reform, numbering 200 across major cities which include Lyon, Toulouse, Marseilles, Lilles, Nantes, and Paris. 

To add insult to injury, Macron announced last Friday the proposal to allocate a huge chunk of public expenditures to boost the military in 2024-2030. 

Macron's plan essentially involves an increase of 413 billion euros ($446 billion) to the army in 2024-2030, up from 295 billion euros in the previous budget.

A pretext for suggesting such radical measures is that the head of state had scheduled several reforms prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, but their coming to being now has sparked strikes of a scale unseen in the past 30 years.

The purpose of the military boost is intended "to respond to the needs of the armed forces." It would pave the road for the change that France's military requires to deal with prospective challenges, in Macron's view. 

"As war is changing, France has and will have armies ready for the perils of the century," he said."We need to do better and do it differently," Macron explained, adding that “after repairing the armed forces, we are going to transform them.”

Likewise, expenditures for military intelligence to shield against cyber attacks will be raised by 60% for the same period. As for air defense, an increase of about 50% is proposed. 

By boosting military expenditures, France will be meeting "the expectations of a partner," namely NATO.

Read more: Approval rate of Macron, Borne fall to record lows over pension reform