Earlier this week, ERR reported there were shortages of milk sold in plastic bags in some of Estonia's supermarkets.

Marta Palm, purchasing manager at Rimi Estonia, said around two weeks ago the producer of Rimi Smart milk told the supermarket there were supply difficulties.

"We have been in very close contact with the producer, and the producer has said that the transition to new feed had temporarily made raw milk production more difficult," she said.

One of the suppliers of milk in plastic bags, Maag Food, declined to comment on the issue to Saturday's "Aktuaalne kaamera" evening news show. But Lenno Link, head of dairy farming company Väätsa Agro, said changing feed generally does not affect production, which is usually "very stable".

Raw milk production is actually increasing in Estonia by around 100 tons each year, as processors are competing for raw milk more than before.

"People are consuming more and more protein. This is largely also thanks to weight-loss drugs, and animal protein is being added everywhere, to various products. Whey protein powder, which is produced from raw milk, has become very scarce," Link said.

Prices on the European milk market have risen by around 10 percent in recent months. This gives dairy farmers hope of signing more favorable supply contracts with processors for next year.

The Estonian Chamber of Agriculture and Commerce said the tense period of contract negotiations may be one reason why supplies of milk in plastic bags have been disrupted in recent weeks.

"This competition means that raw material prices are rising, dairy processors have to pay more to obtain milk, and so they are looking for ways to process that milk into higher-value products to add more value to it. The question is rather whether milk in plastic bags can be sold in stores at a price that is also fair to producers," said Ants-Hannes Viira, head of agricultural policy at the chamber.

"Milk in plastic bags is certainly not going to disappear from the mainstream market anytime soon. I have been in the dairy industry for over 20 years, and there has been constant talk about milk in plastic bags disappearing, but today we still see that consumption of milk in plastic bags in Estonia is 100 tons per day," said Valio CEO Maido Solovjov.

According to Rimi's purchasing manager, Maag Food has promised to resume its deliveries of milk in plastic bags next week, and the retailer has pledged not to raise the product's price.

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