The Macedonian government says it has banned the export of flour until mid-September, in order to protect the domestic market and provide sufficient quantities of flour for processing.

The Agriculture Ministry said in a statement yesterday the flour ban is in addition to a recently enacted ban on the export of wheat, reported Bloomberg.

The measures aim to help stabilize the price of bread, which saw a nearly 30 percent increase in March, from 23 to 30 denars (36 euro cents to 48 euro cents). The increased prices have been attributed to a poor wheat crop because of a drought last year.

The government decided to release 40,000 tons of wheat from its stocks for sale on the domestic market after the price increase.