Israelis are set to pay more for milk and other dairy products beginning next week.
On May 1, the price of government-controlled dairy products is set to rise by up to 16 percent, the Agriculture Ministry announced.
As an example: one liter of three percent fat milk will cost NIS 7.23 next week – a shekel more than its current price of NIS 6.23.
The price rise is due at least in part to the fact the prices of electricity and fuel have risen by ten percent. Salaries in the food industry have also risen by nearly nine percent, and the Consumer Price Index has risen as well over the same period, by some five percent, the ministry noted.
The price hike is also due in part, at least indirectly, to the war in Ukraine, the ministry added.
Up to last year, until Russia’s invasion, Ukraine produced and exported much of the grain used for livestock feed. Now those prices are higher, and the cost of raw milk has risen by 12 percent as a result.
“We did not realize the war in Ukraine would go on for so long,” the ministry explained. “That has pushed up prices.”
