Bakers have warned that if the current power cuts continue indefinitely, they may be forced to suspend all operations.
The National Bakers Association of Zimbabwe (NBAZ) said that it was not possible for the industry to run on generators all the time.
Speaking in an interview with the Daily News, NBAZ president Dennis Wallah said:
The issue is not a matter of whether they have closed or not but of operating hours.
If there is flour but no electricity, there will be no bread. Now we understand that most bakeries have had to adjust the working times of their bakery staff members who come in at 10 pm when electricity is back for them to bake bread.
The power cuts have drastically reduced the working time to only four or five hours a day and it is economically unrealistic to operate a generator the whole day, considering the size of the machines to be used.
Bread has been in short supply over the past several days with some major retail chains going for days without receiving any supplies at all.