Large chains opposed the legalization of online alcohol sales

​​Association of Retail Trade Companies (AKORT; unites X5 Group, “Magnet“, Auchan, “Ribbon“, etc.) opposed the initiative to legalize the remote sale of alcohol. About it reported RBC with reference to a letter from the association sent to Deputy Head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Viktor Evtukhov.

ACORT suggests that online alcohol sales remain a “weakly controlled and high-risk sales channel” and its legalization creates risks for consumers. The association emphasized that adult buyers do not have problems purchasing alcohol, including when placing an online order in a store and choosing delivery via pick-up. In this case, the buyer can be confident in the quality of the purchased products.

If the online sale of alcohol is legalized, Chairman of the Presidium of ACORT Igor Karavaev believes, the number of sites that will sell alcohol online will increase. At the same time, there is currently no mechanism in Russia to combat counterfeit alcohol products on the Internet. It is clarified that over the past three years the number of such sites has doubled. As a result of the legalization of online trade, the fight against counterfeit products may become more difficult, and the number of poisonings with surrogate alcohol among the population will increase, AKORT noted.

At the same time, the Azbuka Vkusa retailer, which is also a member of the association, did not take part in drawing up the letter. They noted that they support the idea of ​​legalizing online trading, since this will “contribute both to the convenience of consumers and to the stabilization of the alcohol market, reducing the shadow circulation of alcohol.”

Since 2022, the possibility of liberalizing the trade in alcohol has been actively discussed. Initially, it was planned to conduct an experiment with the online sale of Russian wines through Russian Post from the fall of 2023. The Government Commission approved its implementation from November 1, 2023 to July 31, 2026. It is assumed that delivery is possible no earlier than 24 hours after placing the order . Only adult customers will be able to buy wine by presenting an ID. The Ministry of Finance was involved in the development of the bill; in the spring of 2023, it was submitted to the State Duma, but in mid-June it became known that discussion of the bill in parliament was suspended.

At the same time, a bill by Senator Andrei Klishas on the legalization of online trading was submitted to the State Duma. The permit will only be valid if the seller is included in the register of persons owning sites for the remote retail sale of alcohol. Rosalkoregulirovanie will maintain such a register. In this case, the user will have to confirm his age through an account in the Unified System of Identification and Authentication (USIA), as well as when receiving alcohol – using a passport or QR code indicating the identification carried out. In the Ministry of Industry and Trade supported idea of ​​the bill.