Croatia's milk producers block capital's main street

(ZAGREB) - Croatia's milk producers blocked the capital's main street on Wednesday to protest low prices set by a local branch of French group Lactalis, police said.

Dozens of tractors blocked off Slavonska Avenue, which crosses the nation's capital, snarling traffic for miles (kilometres).

Protesters accuse the Dukat company, Croatia's main milk producer, controlled by Lactalis since 2007, to have unilaterally terminated a pricing agreement that brought dairy prices in line with the European Union average.

Milk producers say Dukat proposed 0.30 euros (2,30 kunas, $0.40) for a litre of milk, while under the terms of the accord it should be 0.36 euros per litre.

Dukat released a statement saying it hoped to reach an agreement with protesters soon.

Since 2009, the government has provided about 200 million euros ($265 million) in milk-producer subsidies, but that amount could dwindle this year under government austerity measures.