Dairy giants Strauss and Tara dropped their prices Sunday after rival company Tnuva did the same. Like Tnuva, the two companies credited a drop in the price of milk.
Strauss will lower the price of white cheese by 12%, and the price of its ‘Milky’ chocolate treats by 8%. The change in price will go into effect on Wednesday.
Two hours after Strauss announced the planned price cut, Tara followed suit. Tara executives said, “Tara will continue to look out for its consumers and to reduce prices in accordance with the reduction of the price of milk, and of market prices.”
They did not say which products would become less expensive, or what the new prices would be.
Earlier in the day students announced that they would continue to lead a boycott of Tnuva despite the price cuts. Tnuva executives have decried the protest as unreasonable, saying when it was first announced, “There is no company more Israeli than us – we do not import anything, but rely entirely on local agriculture… We are listening attentively to [the consumer] protests and were the first to slash prices.”
Student leaders are targeting Tnuva because the company controls more than 50% of the Israeli dairy market, a fact they say has stifled competition and thus led to higher prices.