The control of food prices/spokesperson of the State Comptroller
In recent months, food prices have risen sharply, with a 4.2% increase in food prices in 2023 (according to the CBS data). In 2024, the trend continued when, at the beginning of February, a long list of the largest manufacturers and importers in the economy raised prices by 25-10% %.
The price increases are contrary to the global trend of food cheapening - the global food price index decreased by 10.4% in 2023, when the prices of meat and chicken decreased for seven months in a row, and the cereals, wheat and corn were also reduced. In 2023, the prices of sugar in the world decreased by 6.7%, meat prices fell by 4.3%, dairy prices fell by 3.9% and the price of edible oil fell by 3%.
Data published today by the Central Bureau of Statistics shows that despite the war and the Houthi attacks, the price of imports itself was reduced in 2023 At the level of 1% for the import of products for current consumption which include food, clothing, footwear and household goods.
The cost of importing food and current consumer goods decreased in 2023/screenshot, Walla system!
The strengthening of the shekel against the dollar as well as the euro in the last quarter of 2023 also strengthens the importers - when the real exchange rate between Israel and its trading countries strengthened in the last quarter of 2023 at a rate of 2.6%.
This means that there was room to reduce the retail consumption basket in the food sector on average by this rate - and certainly not to raise prices.
To what extent does the public in Israel pay more for food?
The state auditor's report published last January found that food in Israel is 51% more expensive compared to the European Union and about 37% compared to the OECD countries.
The report also shows that the importers of food and toiletries in Israel enjoy "abnormal profitability" in the absence of sufficient competition, And especially the ten largest importers, who together hold a common market share that exceeds 50% of the entire food and consumer goods industry.
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And the supervision of the state?
almost non-existent.
The Ministry of Economy did not have an orderly monitoring of the activities of the manufacturers and did not ask for cost and profitability reports as it is required by its work procedures.
The latest report on this issue, which is in the hands of the inspector at the Ministry of Economy, is updated only for 2017.
The non-existent supervision resulted in a poor rate of fines imposed for offenses - there was a decrease in the number of enforcement cases opened in 2021 (127) compared to the number of cases opened in 2018-2019 (1,574 ); in the years 2021-2018, only 27% of the violations resulted in punitive measures (609 cases, of which 68 cases ended with a warning, 208 indictments filed and 333 ransom cases). The bottom line - there is no effective enforcement. The
median and most common ransom in the sample is NIS 3,900 , a minor fine both in relation to the ceiling of the fine in the Criminal Procedure Law and in relation to the redemption of those involved in the industry.
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