During the 18th ARTOZA at the Metropolitan Expo exhibition center on March 5, the meeting of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Bakers Federation was held, as well as the gathering of the presidents of the local unions.
The event took place in a packed conference hall (C2) and in a heavy atmosphere due to the national mourning after the Tempe accident. Thus, before the start, a minute’s silence was observed both for the victims of the above tragedy, as well as for the president of the Piraeus Bakers Association, George Tsoukalas who “passed away” unexpectedly a few months ago. The president of the HBF, Mr. Michalis Mousios, taking the stand, initially referred to the problems plaguing the craft bakery sector: energy precision, rising raw material costs and competition from supermarkets. The president of the HBF, based on the research collected by the Federation, mentioned, among other things, the comparative advantages of fresh bread over frozen bread. In particular, a Greek study concludes that: “Physical defects in the quality/safety of the final frozen bakery are due to various causes and lead to reduced loaf volume, bread hardness, undesirable aroma and rapid staleness”.
For the major problem of energy accuracy, Mr. Mousios called on the members of the federation to be vigilant and suggested that they consult Mr. Augustidis, who cooperates with the Federation on these issues. As far as the rumors about the “baker’s basket” are concerned, Mr. Mousios denied them, stressing that they are baseless since the prices in the bakeries have remained moderate all this time. For her part, the vice-president of the OAE and president of the Thessaloniki association, Ms. Elsa Koukumeria, thanked FORUM SA for the flawless organization of the ARTOZA exhibition, while at the same time she announced that the file has been submitted for the registration of the Thessaloniki roll as a product of geographical origin (P. G.E). Next, Mr. Iason Kaplanis took the floor and referred to the unfair competition that bakeries face from supermarkets, pointing out that the latter are the real competitors and not the neighborhood bakeries.
According to the Board of Directors, most of the presidents who were “present” took the stand, expressing their complaints about the energy precision and the jump in the prices of raw materials. For his part, the new president of the Syndicate of Bakers of Athens Suburbs and Surroundings, Mr. Sachinides, after saying that its new administration is trying to do the best, underlined that the Federation must stand by the primary unions, proposing among other things, to make new negotiations with the banks on the issue of the supply of POS. The next Board of Directors of the HBF will take place in Sparta at the beginning of next August, where due honors will be given to the president of the Sparta Bakers Federation, Mr. Nikos Mazis, who is preparing for his retirement.