Latest on milk quotas

THE European Union has approved a 2% increase in milk quotas from April 1 to meet growing demand within the 27-nation region and on global markets.

The increase may help curb food prices, which helped push inflation in the euro region to a 14-year high in February.

An additional eight million tons of milk will be needed to meet European demand, mainly for cheese, between 2007 and 2014, the commission said.