Article content

Venezuelan bakeries are the latest industry to find themselves in the cross-hairs of President Nicolas Maduro’s administration as bread lines grow in the capital Caracas.

The government has ordered bakers to use scarce supplies of flour to produce price-controlled loaves and said that only 10 per cent can be used to make the unregulated, pricey treats loved by Venezuelans including cachitos — a sort of croissant that can be stuffed with ham or cheese. The government dispatched price regulators to hundreds of bakeries in Caracas this week to make sure the order was being followed.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Black market brownies and illegal croissants: Venezuela arrests bakers for making treats as bread lines grow Back to video

“There will be a political team for each bakery so that we have vigilance and permanent control over the 709 bakeries in Caracas,” Vice President Tareck El Aissami said on Sunday. “We’ve identified part of the conspiracies and sabotage” that had prevented bread reaching the people.

Venezuela price regulator Sundee said in a statement on Wednesday that several bakery managers had been brought before the public prosecutor for using flour supplies to only produce sweets, cachitos and other higher-end items. Two other bakers were arrested for making brownies with flour that had past its expiration date, Sundee said.