The cabinet today unanimously approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposal to establish a committee to promote alternative imports of food. The committee, chaired by Prime Minister's Office director general Harel Locker, will examine alternatives and to facilitate parallel imports of food, while maintaining the high health standards and regulations, in order to lower food prices.
"The retail market is a cartel, and should be opened to competition," said Netanyahu. "There is an unacceptable system of historic arrangements, which has boosted prices, and harmed consumers. Unless the market is opened to imports, food prices will not fall."
The committee members will include Ministry of Health director general Ronny Gamzo, Ministry of the Economy director general Amit Lang, and Budget Director Amir Levy.
The committee seeks to lower food prices through alternative imports, which are currently limited, to create an alternative to exclusive importers. The team will examine ways to greatly facilitate the import of a wide range of foods, some of which are new, and some of which are already sold in the country.
The committee's objective will be to increase competition in the food market by reviewing the entry of new importers, and increasing the number of companies authorized to export food to Israel through the issue of a national quality label, instead of a separate label for each food item.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 12, 2014
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