Lidl Ireland has announced a 10 cent reduction in the price of two litres of own-brand milk with the price cut taking effect from Saturday morning.
It is the second price decrease announced by the retailer in under two months with the other supermarkets almost certain to follow suit in the days ahead.
The price move will see a two-litre carton of milk fall in price from €2.19 to €2.09 and, according to Lidl, will see €3 million in savings passed directly on to its shoppers in Ireland.
A family that buys four two-litre containers of milk each week are likely to save just over €40 when the impact of the two price reductions are added up.
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Lidl was the first Irish retailer to reduce the price of the milk in May. The staple has seen unprecedented fluctuation in price over the past year due to the increased cost of production.
Lidl’s chief executive JP Scally said the supermarket chain was “committed to leading the Irish grocery sector on price” and said it had dropped the prices of hundreds of household staples in recent weeks “and we will continue to drop prices on the items that matter most to our customers”.
While prices up and down supermarket aisles have climbed steadily over the last 18 months, the dairy section has been hit particularly hard.
Higher input costs – notably energy and transportation – were blamed for the dramatic increase in prices over recent months.
In the Autumn of 2021 a litre of full fat own-brand milk in Irish supermarkets cost 75 cent. Today and in advance of the price cut a litre of milk is priced at €1.09.
If the price reduction is introduced across Irish supermarkets then the price of a litre of own-brand milk is likely to be €1.04, still significantly higher than before the cost of living crisis began.