Saudi consumer protection body says Almarai price hike unjustified

The Saudi Consumer Protection Association (CPA) said in a statement on Wednesday that the reasons cited by Almarai for increasing the prices of its milk products are “vague, inaccurate and lacking details.”

The production costs mentioned in the company’s statement had not changed recently, especially diesel - being the main component for operating the production equipment and the main fuel for transportation and distribution.

Food and beverage producers are required to maintain price stability, the CPA said.

“Various options are available in the market,” the association added on its Twitter account.

The dairy and juice producer Almarai announced raising prices of its milk products starting July 2 by 5 percent to 9 percent, citing higher costs of energy, fuel, fodder and workforce, Argaam reported.