Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon announced Tuesday that Israel will increase imports of butter, for both household and industrial purposes, in order to compensate for the ongoing shortage of the Israeli baking and household dairy necessity.
Kahlon signed a directive that raised the household butter imports to 2,750 tons and industrial imports of butter for factories to 3,500 tons. The move increases imports by 13 and 24 percent, respectively, which Kahlon said would “increase the butter supply in the market and end the shortages in stores.
“There’s no reason in this day and age for there to be a shortage of butter.
“In future, we will need to make dramatic decisions on this issue, like completely removing the quotas and opening the market” to unhindered foreign competition, “in order to ensure the Israeli consumer doesn’t face this kind of situation again.”
Butter in Israel is produced by the country’s largest manufacturer, Tnuva, and by the second-largest manufacturer, Tara. There has been a shortage of the milk-fat product for months.
