Weak alcohol will be tightly regulated

The measures for additional regulation of the circulation of beer and cider, formulated by the State Duma Committee on Economic Policy after mass alcohol poisoning in a number of regions, turned out to be very extensive. Among them are the introduction of minimum retail prices, the tightening of bottling sales to a complete ban, the creation of a register of distributors and a change in terminology. The opinions of multinational brewers and local players do not agree on almost all points.

The State Duma Committee on Economic Policy recommended that the Ministry of Finance consider introducing minimum retail prices (MRP) for beer and cider, strengthening control over the sale of drinks on tap, up to a complete ban and creating a register of distributors. This is stated in the minutes of the meeting on additional measures to regulate the market after the mass poisoning with the drink “Mr. Cider”. Kommersant has a copy of the document dated June 14.

The Ministry of Finance is also invited to think about changing the concept of “beer drink” to “special beer” with the development of new standards. The Ministry of Industry and Trade was recommended to expedite the preparation of a draft law on the methanol turnover accounting system, and the Ministry of Economy to consider lifting the moratorium on inspections in the production and circulation of alcohol.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade told Kommersant that the proposed regulation provides for the inclusion of producers, sellers and consumers of methanol in a special register with reporting.

The Ministry of Finance and the Kommersant Committee did not respond.

As the head of the Ministry of Health Mikhail Murashko reported last week, since the beginning of June, 106 people have been poisoned by surrogate alcohol in several regions, of which 36 people have died. Presumably, the reason was the Mister Cider drink, which contained methanol, produced by Andi LLC in the Samara region. By June 8, 71.4 thousand liters of the drink were withdrawn from circulation, Rospotrebnadzor reported.

Some recommendations of the State Duma committee were put forward by the market participants themselves. The Association of Producers of Beer, Malt and Drinks (APP; unites AB InBev Efes, Baltika and Heineken United Brewery) proposed to the Ministry of Finance to tighten control over the draft segment and abolish the category “beer drinks”. And the National Association of Traditional Cider Manufacturers advocated fixing the name “cider” for a naturally fermented drink and for the MRP for a drink. The Union of Russian Brewers (SRP) also asks to establish an MRP for brewing products. In a letter to the State Duma Committee dated June 16 (Kommersant has a copy), the PSA indicates that this will help consumers switch to high-quality and safe products, and will allow the state to more effectively control sales.

Nikolai Zhelagin, founder of the Beru Vykhodny chain of beer stores, says that a complete ban on the retail sale of beer and cider for bottling threatens to close about 70% of breweries in the country and will be a blow to small and medium-sized businesses, while transnational companies that are poorly represented in this segment will benefit . In addition, owners of outlets who do not want to comply with the ban will be able to continue working under the guise of catering establishments, adds Mr. Zhelagin. The introduction of a register of wholesale companies, adds independent expert Alexei Nebolsin, will also lead to an increase in the share of transnational players that are engaged in distribution themselves.

Oraz Durdyev, President of AB InBev Efes, points out that the MRP for beer and cider is an unreasonable and excessive measure that will continue to encourage the consumer to switch to cheap surrogate alcohol and increase the margin of illegal players.

According to him, in the retail and draft segment beer costs 140 rubles on average. for 1 liter and 100 rubles. for 1 liter, respectively, cider – about 170 rubles. per 1 liter, and the MRP will lead to a rise in price by another 5–10%.

As Mr. Durdyev emphasizes, the mass shipment is caused by an alcoholic cocktail with the addition of methanol, which is registered as a “beer drink” for tax evasion, and the abolition of the “beer drinks” category eliminates the possibility of falsification. APP Executive Director Vyacheslav Mamontov adds that it is necessary to establish a norm according to which only companies with a full production cycle will be able to produce brewing products. The PSA, in turn, proposes to adjust the rules for the production of beer drinks, banning the use of ready-made beer, and to increase the minimum level of malted raw materials from 30% to 60%. So only the products obtained by fermentation will remain in the category, indicate in the PSA.

Igor Khavsky, co-owner of the SWAM Group distributor and the Gletcher brewery, notes that discussions on some issues have been going on for several years and it is unlikely that business will be able to reach a consensus today. Alexey Nebolsin believes that random checks of products on the shelf for added alcohol should become a priority. Oraz Durdiyev also talks about the need to create the possibility of checking the liquid at the points for compliance with the label and documents.

Anatoly Kostyrev