Osem Investments Ltd. (TASE: OSEM) will cut prices for Materna infant food formula after the Sukkot holiday to avoid a consumer boycott by the cottage cheese boycott leaders and student unions. The food company has been in feverish internal discussions to head off a boycott in the foreknowledge that it would have to meet consumer demands.
Osem considered asking the Antitrust Authority to orchestrate a general reduction in prices by manufacturers of a wide range of consumer products.
Osem will also launch a campaign "Osem gives you more" in which it will increase the sizes of packages by 25-30% for 20-30 products at no extra cost. This is not a new discount, but an annual campaign that Osem has run for the past three years.
Tnuva Food Industries Ltd. and Strauss Group Ltd. (TASE:STRS) have already announced price cuts in response to consumer boycotts.
Osem's share price rose 0.2% in morning trading today to NIS 49.83, giving a market cap of NIS 5.5 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 10, 2011
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