Powdered milk prices to rise by 10% RIYADH: SHARIF M. TAHA Published — Friday 23 August 2013 Local markets are predicted to witness a 10-percent hike in the price of powdered milk before the end of the current year due to the increasing price of long-life fresh milk during the past five years. Prices of powdered milk in the local market increased at rates ranging from 5 to 10 percent during the second quarter of the current year compared to the figures of the first quarter, Al-Hayat reported. Prices of powdered milk normally rise gradually throughout the year, and prices of long-life fresh milk are predicted to increase by 10 percent in the local market by the end of the year due to price increases of raw material used in the production of foodstuff, said Sami Al-Husain, member of the retail committee at the Jeddah chamber of commerce and industry (JCCI). He ruled out that price hikes in fresh milk will negatively affect prices of baby milk in the Kingdom because the government has already subsidized prices to curtail sharp price shifts in baby milk. But other types of powdered milk are subject to price fluctuations globally, where prices in European countries increased by 5 percent, he said. Mohamed Fallata, a member of the food industries committee at the JCCI, said the price of long-life milk would register an increase of 10 percent during the coming period. He said the price of one ton of powdered milk increased from $3,000 to $5,000 globally, whereas its price at local levels rose at rates ranging from 5 to 10 percent during the second quarter compared to the first quarter of the current year. Abdullah Al-Maghloth, economic expert, said global inflation has contributed to the rise in food prices locally and, in this context, lauded the government in controlling prices of baby milk. He said prices of powdered milk are rising on a continuous basis at the global level. The volume of milk and dairy products consumed in the GCC countries is estimated at 1.9 billion liters of which 1.2 billion liters, or 63.7 percent, come in the form of fresh and powdered milk. The share of Saudi market is estimated at 59 percent of the GCC total market, he said. According to experts, the average Saudi per capita consumption of dairy products stands at 65 liters per year, which is considered very low compared to the lowest rate of consumption at the global level, which stands at 120 liters. #sunnyxtreme
Posted on: Sun, 25 Aug 2013 08:05:08 +0000
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