Ramadan 2023: Muslims share how rising prices have affected their celebrations this year
Muslims in the UK have shared their concerns about how rising costs are going to impact their Ramadan celebrations.
During the month of Ramadan, Muslims will fast during the hours of daylight.
They will break their fast at sunset – an observance known as Iftar – where friends, family and members of the community often gather to enjoy a large meal together.
The predawn meal to start the daily fast is called Suhoor.
But with rising food and energy costs, some people said they worried about how they will cope financially this year.
Ramadan and Eid are important moments for nearly four million people across the UK.
According to a recent survey of 236 UK Muslims by Nano Interactive, almost half of British Muslims say the cost-of-living crisis has already impacted their Ramadan and Eid preparations.
Around 41% say they’re less likely to eat out for Iftar and will opt for home-cooked meals and 42% expect to spend less than £30 per person on Eid gifts this year – two-thirds said this was “much less” than the amount they spent last year.
A further 40% of those surveyed said they were turning to budget-friendly grocery stores such as Lidl or Aldi when preparing for Ramadan this year.
One mother of two told Birmingham Live that she had seen a big difference in the cost of food staples over the last few months.
She said: “I have spent £60 on three bags of groceries. I worry.
“We have people coming to our house for Iftar. I will call less people for Iftar because we will only have enough food for our family.”
Another shopper, Small Heath Councillor and mom-of-five Shabina Bano, told the publication that her weekly food bill could rise from £120 to £200 during Ramadan.
To help with costs, Shabina said she would be making more vegetarian dishes to try and keep the costs down.
She added: “I do feel for the less fortunate who will rely on food banks. The gas and electricity has gone up and this is where the mosques will be opening their doors.”
Ibrahim Abbasi, who is the owner of the independent food store Foodworld in Birmingham told BirminghamLive that he had been forced to raise prices after his yearly expenditure rocketed from £1million a year to £1.7million.
He explained: “A lot of customers are paying for basics on credit cards, before it would have been cash or debit cards, and trolley shoppers have gone on to baskets.
“People go from shop to shop and pick up bits and bobs and make do. Prices have risen so high and stabilised from that peak so I can’t see them coming down.”
“What we are trying to do is find as many deals as we can for Ramadan so we can give the customer a competitive price.”
