Tnuva to bump prices of milk products

Tnuva, Israel’s largest manufacturer of dairy foodstuffs, on Thursday announced a rise in the consumer prices of its products. The company said the move was necessitated by a 9 percent increase in the cost of unpasteurized milk, the main basic ingredient of dairy products.

In recent months tax hikes, and the rising price of fuel and energy, have driven up prices of basic staples, resulting in a steep drop in the public’s buying power. The trend was met with widespread criticism over the rising cost of living in Israel.

The move comes a day after similar price hikes were announced by Tnuva’s main competitor, Strauss.

Tnuva said it would raise the prices of more than half of its dairy products by 2% to 3.5%. The price of its popular cottage cheese, as well as that of products whose price was state-regulated, would not be part of the hike.

Tnuva’s cottage cheese was at the heart of a consumer boycott of the company in 2011, when a Facebook group called on the public to stop buying the product, which is perceived as a basic staple in Israel. The group garnered 100,000 users, sparking public discussion of the cost of living in Israel and succeeding in lowering consumer prices.