Sudan bread crisis deepens as soaring prices put staple beyond reach

Bread has become both more expensive and harder to find in Khartoum. The price of a loaf rose from 250 to 500 Sudanese pounds in one week. Most bakeries have shut because wheat prices are rising and fuel is difficult to obtain. This matters because flatbread is a basic part of Sudanese meals.

Sawsan Mahmoud said she and her husband set aside 900,000 pounds each month for bread. That amount nearly equals their combined salaries. Her family now eats bread with only one meal daily. At another bakery, Abir Mohammed said people could no longer have bread with every meal. Flour shortages are also forcing customers to wait at distribution centres and leave empty-handed.

The crisis is worsening as the Sudanese pound loses value and power cuts disrupt bakeries. One bakery owner sells each loaf below cost and may close. If more bakeries shut, families will face longer queues, higher prices, and fewer affordable meals.

Sudan’s food crisis is national in scale. Around 20 million people suffer from severe food insecurity, meaning they cannot reliably obtain enough food. Poverty rates have risen to 80 percent, while inflation reached 99 percent last year. These figures show that the crisis affects far more people than those already classified as famine victims.

Famine has been reported in parts of South Kordofan and North Darfur, affecting more than 200,000 people. UN-backed reports warn that famine could spread to eight cities by 2027. In Khartoum, families are returning to public kitchens because wages and ordinary markets no longer reliably provide meals. Community kitchens report that thousands of families and displaced people need help.

The crisis could deepen as fighting divides supply routes, fuel becomes more expensive, and the currency weakens. International organisations warn that famine may spread. Rising prices and disrupted deliveries mean people can lose access to food even when some supplies exist elsewhere.

Inflation is a broad rise in prices over time. A falling currency means the Sudanese pound loses value against currencies such as the dollar. When both happen, incomes usually buy fewer goods. Sudan’s inflation reached 99 percent last year, and the pound recently lost about 25 percent of its value against the dollar.

The article shows this through food prices. Bread rose from 250 to 500 pounds in a week. Meat now costs 50,000 to 70,000 pounds per kilogram. Al-Muradi Awad said someone who once bought two kilograms might now afford only 125 grams. Families must reduce meals or spend nearly all their wages on staples.

The pressure also affects businesses and government purchases. Sudan imports most wheat and much of its fuel, so a weaker pound makes these imports more expensive. Bakeries then face higher costs, while customers cannot easily absorb price increases. Some bakeries sell below cost and risk closing.

Imported wheat and fuel expose bread prices to currency movements. When the Sudanese pound weakens against the dollar, importers need more pounds to buy the same shipment. That raises the cost of flour. Fuel becomes more expensive too, increasing the cost of baking, generators, and transport.

The article reports that the dollar rose from 500 Sudanese pounds in 2023 to more than 10,500 pounds recently, before easing to around 10,200. Over the past month alone, the pound lost about 25 percent of its value. In Khartoum, a loaf doubled to 500 pounds as wheat prices surged.

Bakeries face a difficult choice. Raising prices could make bread unaffordable, but keeping prices low can cause losses. Mutawakil Ahmed Babiker sells loaves for less than their cost and says he may close. Currency weakness therefore threatens both household budgets and the businesses supplying bread.

Bread depends on several systems working together: flour must arrive, ovens need power or fuel, and finished loaves must reach customers. Sudan’s war is disrupting each step. Fighting has closed roads, fuel shortages have limited transport and generators, and power stations have been repeatedly attacked by drones.

In Khartoum, bakeries face power cuts and must buy fuel for generators. Mohammed al-Fateh said many bakeries closed because flour was unavailable, while customers could spend one or two days at distribution centres without receiving supplies. Outside Khartoum, aid deliveries of wheat are blocked by road closures, high fuel prices, and insecurity.

These disruptions reduce production while raising costs. Bakers may sell below cost, as one operator does, but cannot continue indefinitely. More closures would mean fewer loaves, longer queues, and greater pressure on families already cutting meals. Transport and energy failures can therefore turn a supply problem into a wider food crisis.

Public kitchens are becoming essential because ordinary households cannot consistently buy enough food. Bread prices have doubled, wages are being consumed by staples, and markets face shortages. Returning to free meal lines shows that the crisis is not only about food availability; it is also about whether people can pay for food.

Sawsan Mahmoud said her household spends 900,000 pounds a month on bread alone. In Omdurman, the Ombada Emergency Room reported that the circle of need was expanding to thousands of families and displaced people. It warned that soaring prices and shortages could make even one daily meal a dream.

Many kitchens stopped operating after the army retook Khartoum and expelled the RSF in March 2025. Their return signals a sharp deterioration in living conditions. If prices, shortages, and unemployment continue, community kitchens may face growing demand while supplies become harder and more expensive to secure.

Famine is the most extreme form of food crisis. It occurs when people lack reliable access to enough food, causing widespread severe hunger and threatening lives. Food may exist in another region, but that does not prevent famine if people cannot buy it or move it to where it is needed.

In Sudan, fighting divides territory between the army and the RSF. Roads are closed, fuel is scarce, and power and transport systems are damaged. The falling pound also makes imported wheat and fuel more expensive. These failures can prevent food from reaching communities, while poverty prevents families from purchasing what reaches local markets.

The article reports famine affecting more than 200,000 people in South Kordofan and North Darfur. UN-backed reports warn it could spread to eight cities by 2027. This shows why purchasing power, transport, and distribution matter together: breaking any link can leave people hungry, while breaking several can produce famine.