Poland is selling its strategic butter reserves to curb soaring prices

Poland is selling up to 1,000 metric tons (1,102 tons) of its frozen butter reserves to bring down surging prices ahead of presidential elections in May.

Poland is selling up to 1,000 metric tons (1,102 tons) of its frozen butter reserves to bring down surging prices ahead of presidential elections in May. The government’s strategic reserves agency announced the butter auction Tuesday, citing significant increases in butter prices worldwide that it blamed on a shortage of milk. “This emergency action… should contribute to stabilizing butter prices in the market,” the agency said, according to a report by CNN affiliate TVN24, a local commercial news channel. The agency said it would sell the unsalted frozen spread to businesses in 25-kilogram (55-pound) blocks, for the minimum price of 28.38 zlotys ($7) per kilo. That is well below prices at Biedronka, one of Poland’s major supermarket chains. The retailer sells fresh butter for between 39.90-49.95 zlotys ($9.84-$12.32), depending on the brand, according to its website. The final selling price in the auction could, however, be higher than the minimum price. It’s not unheard of for governments to tap into emergency reserves in order to boost supply and bring down prices. While such reserves are typically dominated by foreign currency or commodities such as oil and gold, some countries stockpile products deemed important to local diets. For example, in recent years, China has drawn from its strategic pork reserves and Canada has released stores of maple syrup amid shortages.