Milk price growth by 20% makes Ukrainian cheese uncompetitive with Polish products - analysts

MOSCOW. Nov 20 (Interfax) - Ukrainian cheese manufacturers may see a tighter competition with Polish products on the domestic market, as the price of milk in Ukraine has grown 20% since the beginning of fall, Ukrainian media said with the reference to the Infagro sectoral analytical agency.

"Since the beginning of fall, leading Ukrainian cheese manufacturers have twice raised prices of their products, as raw milk prices have gone up 20%. True, cheese prices have grown only 10% over this period," the analysts said, adding that cheese makers might have to continue pressure on retail chains to raise the prices.

While comparing prices of domestic and Polish cheese, the experts said that Polish products are much cheaper even despite the cost of imports into Ukraine. "It is not hard to guess what cheese will be bought by retail chains," the analysts said.

As an example of the growing interest in imported cheese, they cited trade statistics, according to which purchases of cheeses - hard, semi-hard, white - increased by 10% in October 2023, compared to September, and by more than a third compared to the same month last year.