The minimum wholesale and home delivery prices for fluid milk and cream sales on Prince Edward Island are up by one cent per litre, while a case of beer will cost an additional 50 cents, all effective Monday (Feb. 1).
P.E.I. Marketing Council chair Gordon MacBeath announced the dairy price increases in a release Monday. Producers will see about 30 per cent of that increase while processors get the remaining 70 per cent, he said.
Fluid milk products include homogenized, two per cent and one per cent milk, skim milk and chocolate milk. Fluid cream products include blend, table cream and whipping cream.
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When adjusting the minimum prices, the council considers producer milk component price changes announced by Dairy Farmers of P.E.I., a cost-of-processing formula developed in the province several years ago, and consultations with processors about other manufacturing costs and economic factors, MacBeath said.
Retail prices in the province are not regulated, he emphasized, meaning processors and distributors have the option to sell a product for more than the minimum price if they wish.
Glass costs
The P.E.I. Liquor Control Commission announced in a separate release that it would adjust prices on beer products effective Monday. The adjustment represents an increase of 50 cents per dozen on domestic beer and 20 cents across the board on the single-serve can category (mostly made up of beers imported from outside North America).
For example, a pack of 12 cans of domestic beer will now cost $21.49, up from $20.99. The “slight” price increase brings the P.E.I. market in line with retailers in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, the commission said.
The commission cited higher costs incurred by suppliers in the areas of raw material, transportation, packaging and glass for the price increase.
For example, the commission said, the closure of the Owens Illinois glass plant at Scoudouc, N.B., about 20 km northeast of Moncton, has forced a number of suppliers to source glass from “far outside the region.”
