As Iranians ushered in the new year, the price of food continued to rise, as it had done the year before. The exorbitant prices have made shoppers angry and frustrated, but they have also upset the people who sell these goods: shopkeepers, market stall holders and owners of grocery stores. People say every day something new disappears from their daily shop because they cannot afford it: items they once took for granted and that they regarded as ordinary, basic and essential. They have less on their plates, and certainly less choice.
An IranWire citizen journalist using the pseudonym Laden Saba spoke with shoppers and shopkeepers about the rising prices and inflation.
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On Saturday, April 10, 2021, Farhikhtegan newspaper reported an increase in prices over the first 20 days of the new year: water and electricity were 7 percent more expensive, chicken 19 percent, cereals up 25 percent, urban and inter-urban transportation 25 percent higher, tobacco 30 percent, cement 35 percent, fruit 35 percent, sugar cubes 40 percent, and granulated sugar 50 percent. In addition, goods such as cooking oil or diapers saw significant price increases in the early days of the year.
Donya-e Eghtesad newspaper also published a report on inflation. On Sunday, April 11, it provided a list of some of the items that had risen in price by 100 percent throughout 2020-2021. They included mushrooms, chicken, red beans, eggs, soft drinks, butter, chickpeas, cream, lentils, cooking oils, oranges, imported rice, carrots, cucumbers and bananas. At the same time, the report said, when salaries increased, it was by a maximum of 30 percent.
"The price of goods is now rising by an average of between 10 and 15 percent every 15 days, and people's purchasing power is declining," Masoud, who owns a supermarket on North Bahar Street, told me. “Many can no longer afford to buy anything and have become poor. Someone who used to buy two containers of milk per shop last year now has one, or if he bought five ice creams, he now buys two. The number of people buying on credit has also increased dramatically. I started working at this shop five months ago and during this period, the number of people buying on credit has increased by around 80 percent. Many people don't buy from us anymore and look for cheaper and low-quality items in chain stores. People now buy only essentials such as tomato paste, pasta, and detergents, and other items such as chocolate, snacks, tuna and health and beauty items are rarely sold. For example, a can of tuna is now 33,000 tomans [US$1.32]. Well, people just cannot afford to buy it."
“Sausages and ham have risen in price from between 20 and 30 percent in the last few days," said Mohammadian, another shopkeeper in a nearby supermarket. "People do not have the purchasing power anymore. The sale of dairy products and beans has fallen; this means people are just buying bread to line their stomachs and cannot buy other necessary items."
"Who Can We Complain To?"
Mohsen, who works at a protein store near Tehran's Valiasr Square, gave his account: ”The price of everything has risen between 40 and 50 percent in the last three months. How is it that some red meat is sold for about 155,000 tomans [$6.45], but sausage, which is apparently 90 percent red meat, sells for 180,000 tomans [$7.50] per kilogram? We know it can’t be 90 percent meat. The cheapest sausage is now 70,000 tomans [$2.90] per kilogram. The middle class, who used to be able to eat fast food once a day, can no longer eat it even once a month. We used to have a customer who bought a few kilos without asking about the price, but now the same person, after asking what it costs, has to be content with buying 200 or 300 grams."
Rasoulpour confirmed what the other men in the grocery business said. "In the last month, the price of a soft drink that used to cost 10,000 tomans [$0.40] has risen to 12,500 tomans [$0.52] and milk that was 8,000 tomans is now 10,000 tomans. Previously, prices rose by 200 or 300 tomans, but now, suddenly, goods go up by between 1,000 and 50,000 tomans. A 10,000-tomans bag of chips is suddenly 12,000 tomans. But who can we complain to? I was selling biscuits just yesterday for 1,500 tomans, but in my list from the supplier today, it is down for 2,000 tomans. The beverage Delster, which was 9,000 tomans, has suddenly increased to 13,500 tomans! The unfortunate worker who came to buy two eggs and a Delster for dinner will no longer be able to buy these things. Canned beans were 10,000 tomans but now the same can is 14,500 tomans. Our sales are going down and we are all becoming more and more miserable."
He pointed to packages of olives and ready-made sandwiches. "Look at these olives, they cost 10,000 tomans, but these new olives from a recent order have suddenly gone up to 14,000 tomans. These olives were 20,000 tomans and are now suddenly 28,000. This sandwich used to cost 11,500 tomans, but now it’s 18,500."
Mohammad Reza, the owner of another supermarket, told me: "Laundry powder was 6,500 tomans and now costs 12,500. That’s 100 percent more expensive! The same goes for other detergents. Laundry washing liquid was 20,000 tomans and is now 32,000 tomans. So what percentage of inflation is this? The same goes for dairy: cheese that cost 12,000 tomans now suddenly costs 18,000 tomans. This has definitely affected our sales as well. The price of eggs rose to 18,000 tomans, which we thought was the peak — but now the cheapest you can get eggs for is 30,000 tomans. Cheap and low-quality sausage, which used to cost 20,000 tomans per kilogram, now costs 45,000 tomans. The lady who left just before you arrived did not buy very much: just biscuits, ice cream, soft drinks and the like, but her bill was 169,000 tomans ($6.75).”
I spoke with two shoppers, Mohammad Amin and Soheil. ”During the first few days of the new year, various items rose between 10 and 15 percent in price. The amount we can buy has decreased and is limited to essential items. Our tables have less food on them and there’s nothing we can do about it. A drink that was 3,000 tomans last year is now 12,000 tomans. The price of yogurt sold in bulk is 36,000 tomans."
Another shopper, Soheila, said: "Everything has become more expensive. We used to buy a lot more but we can no longer afford it. For example, now I buy detergents and use them sparingly until the end of the month. Both daily essentials and luxury goods are becoming more expensive — and our salaries have not risen in line with the price increases.”
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