Israel's Ministries of Finance and Agriculture have canceled import quotas on a range of dairy products including yoghourt, low-fat cheeses (up to 5%) and dairy delicacies. Import quotas on hard cheeses have been increased. The Ministries of Finance and Agriculture have relaxed the quotas, "In a way that is expected to bring down prices of dairy products for the Israeli consumer."
The announcement added, "The order will allow the opening up of the market to import these products freely from European countries in which the price to the consumer per kilogram of yoghourt is an average of NIS 8.5 per kilogram compared with NIS 17 per kilogram in Israel."
Last week, the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture recommended lifting price supervision on butter as part of its efforts to enhance competition and bring down food prices.
This week's relaxation of import quotas is another blow to Israel's three big dairy producers: Tnuva, Strauss Group and Tara. The Ministry of Finance estimates that the cancellation of the quotas will bring down imported cheese prices by 25% from the controlled price in Israel, 'so that the price to the consumer will fall by about NIS 10 per kilogram, while protecting local agriculture."
The Ministry of Finance said that it is implementing the recommendations of the OECD to bring down prices while protecting local agriculture.
Minister of Finance Avigdor Liberman said, "Dairy products in Israel are 79% more expensive than the OECD average, and opening the dairy market to competition is the first step in a basket of solutions for dealing with the cost of living. Following the reduction of quotas, the Israeli consumer can enjoy a range of dairy products at cheaper prices, while protecting local agriculture."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on December 6, 2021.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2021.