On January 23, 2023, in Paris, hundreds of bakers staged a protest against the rising costs of electricity and raw materials, blaming the Ukraine conflict and the Covid-19 pandemic. They highlighted the increased prices of butter, flour, and eggs, attributed to the bird flu outbreak among French farms, and complained about the significant rise in electricity bills after contract renewals in 2023. Despite the French government offering schemes to cut electricity bills by up to 40% for eligible businesses, the bakers argued these solutions were too intricate, slow, or restricted to smaller bakeries. The situation is further aggravated by an 8% return rate of unsold bread products and potential shortages of rye bread, pearl barley, and barley groats in Ukraine. The European Union has experienced a nearly 20% surge in bread prices due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.