Bread shortage threatens to plunge more Sudanese into hunger

Bread has become sharply less affordable in Khartoum. The price of a loaf doubled from 250 to 500 Sudanese pounds in one week. This matters because flatbread is an essential part of Sudanese meals, and many families already face severe food insecurity. Rising prices are forcing people to reduce how much bread they eat.

Bakeries are also struggling to keep operating. Most have shut because wheat prices surged and flour disappeared from markets. Mohammed al-Fateh said customers could wait one or two days at distribution centres and still leave empty-handed. Another baker, Mutawakil Ahmed Babiker, said flour prices doubled and power cuts forced him to buy generator fuel.

The remaining bakeries sell bread for less than its production cost, while many cannot obtain supplies. Some owners may close. As prices rise and public kitchens face growing demand, more families may be left unable to secure even one daily meal.

Food insecurity means households lack reliable access to enough food for healthy, active lives. It can range from uncertainty about the next meal to severe hunger. Sudan has about 20 million people suffering from severe food insecurity, showing that the problem affects a huge share of the population.

Famine is an extreme food crisis, not simply high prices or a poor harvest. It is declared when food shortages and inadequate access become widespread, acute child malnutrition reaches critical levels, and deaths from hunger and related illness rise sharply. Thus, famine describes the most severe stage of deprivation.

The article reports that famine has already been declared in parts of Sudan, including areas of South Kordofan and North Darfur. More than 200,000 people there are experiencing famine. International organisations warn that famine could spread to eight cities by 2027, while prices and supply problems continue.

Sudan is facing a food crisis on a national scale. Around 20 million people suffer from severe food insecurity, meaning they cannot reliably obtain enough food. This number includes people affected by war, high prices, disrupted markets, and shortages of basic staples such as bread.

Famine is affecting a smaller but especially endangered population. UN-backed reports say more than 200,000 people in South Kordofan and North Darfur are experiencing famine. Famine is the most severe form of food crisis, involving extreme hunger and conditions that can cause starvation-related deaths and disease.

The crisis may worsen. International organisations warn that famine could spread to eight cities by 2027. In Khartoum, bakeries are closing, public kitchens are receiving more visitors, and poverty has reached 80 percent. These pressures show how conflict and economic collapse can push more households toward extreme hunger.

When bread becomes unaffordable, families have to choose between food and other basic needs. They may reduce portions, skip meals, or replace nutritious foods with cheaper options. The result is a decline in both the amount and nutritional value of what people eat.

Sawsan Mahmoud said her family sets aside 900,000 pounds each month for bread, nearly equal to her and her husband's combined salaries. They reduced bread consumption and now eat it with only one meal daily. In the market, Al-Muradi Awad said a family that once bought two kilograms of meat might now afford only 125 grams.

Public kitchens offer an important fallback, but their capacity is limited. People have returned to lining up for free meals, while the Ombada Emergency Room says need is expanding to thousands of families and displaced people. It warned that even one daily meal may become a dream.

Bread production depends on several linked supplies: imported wheat, flour, fuel, electricity, and open roads. Sudan imports most of its wheat, so currency collapse and disrupted trade quickly raise costs. When any link fails, bakeries cannot produce or distribute enough bread.

The war has created shortages at every stage. Outside Khartoum, much wheat arrives as aid, but road closures and fighting prevent deliveries. In the capital, bakeries report no flour or long waits at distribution centres. Repeated drone attacks on power stations have caused widespread outages in Khartoum and eastern Sudan. Bakers must buy fuel for generators when electricity fails.

The country is divided into rival zones, making movement harder. The army controls Khartoum and central and eastern Sudan, while the RSF controls much of Darfur and parts of the south. These divisions, plus fuel shortages and unsafe roads, leave supplies delayed, expensive, or unavailable.

A falling currency makes imports more expensive because sellers price international goods in stronger currencies, especially dollars. Buyers must spend more local currency to obtain the same shipment. This raises costs before wheat or fuel even reaches a bakery.

The Sudanese pound lost about 25 percent of its value against the dollar in one month. It fell to more than 10,500 pounds per dollar before recovering slightly to around 10,200. The dollar was worth 500 Sudanese pounds in 2023, when the war began. Sudan imports most of its wheat and most of its fuel, so both are especially exposed to this decline.

Importers pass higher costs through the supply chain. Flour becomes more expensive, generators cost more to run, and bakers face pressure to raise prices. Yet one baker said he sold a loaf for 500 pounds below its cost because customers could not afford more.

When commercial bakeries and ordinary markets fail, food must come through community support and humanitarian channels. Public kitchens can provide free meals, while aid deliveries can supply wheat and other essentials. These options are vital for people who cannot afford market prices or who live in areas cut off by fighting.

In Khartoum, people have returned to lining up outside public kitchens. The Ombada Emergency Room coordinates community kitchens in Omdurman and says they are serving a widening circle of families and displaced people. Outside Khartoum, most wheat arrives as aid, although fighting, road closures, fuel shortages, and high prices prevent many deliveries.

These alternatives cannot yet meet the need. Some kitchens had stopped operating after the army retook Khartoum in March 2025, but demand has returned. Families are also rationing bread and waiting at flour distribution centres. The emergency room warns that even one daily meal may become unattainable.