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Israel: Ministers to Food Companies: Don’t Raise Prices

January 30, 2022 - from Hamodia:

"The Israeli finance and economy ministers have written to major food producers and importers imploring them to cancel plans for price increases, according to media reports on Sunday.

"Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman and Economy Minister Orna Barbivay wrote that this is not the time to seek more profits.

"'The crisis has yet to end, and neither citizens nor businesses have entirely recovered – some are still being negatively impacted by the current Omicron wave of the virus. The Israeli government is doing everything it can to help them survive this wave, but we need the cooperation of the other players in the game too.'

"The ministers also noted that until 2021, the shekel strengthened significantly against foreign currencies while inflation remained low, meaning that imported food items were cheaper for the companies to purchase, savings that were not passed on to consumers in Israel, where prices were and remain the highest in the world.

"Liberman indicated that there might be a price to pay if the companies go ahead with their plans.

"In recent weeks a number of food companies have announced higher price hikes, including Osem, and the importer Diplomat, which merchandises Starkist tuna, Pringles, and Heinz ketchup, among others.

"The consumer price index rose by 0.3 percent in December, notably for clothing and footwear (1.1 percent), housing (0.8 percent), furniture and household goods (0.7 percent), and food (0.5 percent). Fresh fruit and vegetables, by contrast, saw their prices drop (2.7 percent), and cultural events became 0.8 percent cheaper."