New Study Shows: Opening Canned Tuna Imports Barely Reduced Prices

A study by Shlomit Arbel from the Arluzorov-Yesodot Forum found that eliminating tariffs on imported canned tuna led to a price decrease of only 1.1% after a decade, saving households 3.35 shekels per year. The reform, which began in 2013, caused factory closures in the periphery and worker layoffs, while the market share of major distributors remained high.

A new study by Shlomit Arbel from the Arluzorov-Yesodot Forum, published on the Davar website, examined the impact of opening the canned tuna market to imports on consumer prices. The study, conducted over more than a decade (2013-2023), found that an almost complete reduction of tariffs on tuna imports led to a price decrease of only 1.1%, and savings of 3.35 shekels per year per household. The reform, planned after the social protest and implemented gradually starting in 2013, included reducing tariffs to 0% by 2024. Initially, prices dropped by nearly 13%, but since then they have risen back almost completely. The tariff reduction from 12% to 6% in 2022 did not cause a decrease. Meanwhile, local production suffered: from 85% of consumption in 2013 from five factories, to only 20% from two factories in 2023, with worker layoffs and factory closures in the periphery. The market share of the four largest distributors fell from 90% to 75%, and Diplomat holds 40%. The study notes that the state did not take complementary measures recommended by the OECD, and that the benefit did not pass to consumers but to suppliers and retail chains.