consumer affairs

Price of milk up again

The price of dairy products, such as milk and related products, increased slightly during 2007, according to the latest report from the Autoridad de Protección al Consumidor.

The report, released yesterday, said that the price of yellow cheese increased by 32.7 percent. The price of "Grado A" milk rose 24.6 percent, while milk powder prices went up 21 percent. Evaporated milk prices increased 7.9 percent.

"Now, a pound of mozzarella costs 25 percent more than in January 2006, and that has greatly impacted our costs," a spokesman for the pizzeria Tambal said.

Union de Consumidores y Usuarios's President Pedro Acosta said that the government is taking measures to solve this problem. These include providing essential goods to consumers at a "supportive price," a measure that assists 10 to 20 percent of the Panamanian population.

The increase in milk prices has been caused by increases in transportation and electrical expenses, Acosta said.

Panagiotis Stamatakis, owner of Athen's Pizza, said that he is having trouble finding other agricultural products.