The government approved the establishment of measures prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture, - said the Ministry of Finance
Now the wine is considered domestic if it is produced in Russia. The country of origin of a wine material does not matter. We think that lovers of our wine will more consciously make a choice, - stressed the developers of the innovation. Experts are convinced that as a result citizens will prefer alcohol drinks from foreign raw materials.
Producers of alcohol will have to indicate on the labels information about the country of origin of raw materials (grapes, grape must and wine materials) which were used for making wine and champagne. Such requirements are contained in the amendments to the law "On state regulation of production and turnover of ethyl alcohol". They were developed in the Ministry of Agriculture. The government conceptually approved the document without comments , - said the Ministry of Finance.
The purpose of innovations is to raise public awareness and allow consumers to make more conscious choice. In addition, this will create equal competitive conditions for producers who use domestic and foreign raw materials.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, a significant part of still and sparkling wines produced in Russia is made from imported materials. A consumer can be misled when he consciously chooses a domestic product. Thus, the buyer encourages foreign agriculture.
According to Russian Regional and Federal Alcohol Markets Studies Center (CIFRRA) up to 50% of domestic wines are produced from foreign wine materials. According to Federal State Statistics Service last year Russia produced 322 million liters. Imports amounted to approximately 235 million liters calculated in the CIFRRA (official statistics on the import of wine and materials the Federal Customs Service has not prepared yet).
The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade in its response to the bill noted that the measure can lead to higher prices for products. If earlier sets of labels were ordered in bulk, then in the future it will have to be done separately for each blend and acratophore (a device for champagnization). The smaller the batch of labels, the higher the price, - explained the department. Against the background of drop in demand this can make consumers choose cheaper wine drinks. Head of the CIFRRA Vadim Drobiz believes that this will not make the price labels on the wine shelves be changed.
"The implementation of the initiative will not cause higher prices for products," - said he. Although it can require additional measures. For example, producers are obliged to indicate information about the country of origin of the material on the label, and not on the counter-label.
The head of the Union of Winemakers and Viticultureists Leonid Popovich noted that the opinions of business representatives about proposed measure were divided.
- Some experts believe that buyers will rather choose wines from foreign raw materials. Others note that it is important for fans of domestic wine to know that Russian grapes were used for its production, - said Leonid Popovich.
The government intends to engage in the popularization of domestic wine and offers a number of measures. For example, the development of enotourism in the country: the preparation of convenient routes for consumers through the wineries of the country. It is possible that the Ministry of Agriculture will also provide domestic manufacturers amply opportunity to advertise wine on television throughout the day and not only at night. Previously, the need for such measure was said by the Minister of Agriculture. In this regard, it is important that the consumer clearly distinguish between Russian and foreign wines.
