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Russia targets to cut alcohol consumption by three-fold

18 December 2009 15:26 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA-Economics. The Russian government aims to cut what President Dmitry Medvedev calls the countryâ€™s â€œcolossal drinkingâ€ by 72 percent through price controls and a crackdown on bootlegged vodka, Bloomberg reported.

Alcohol consumption in Russia should fall to as low as 5 liters per person a year by 2020 from about 18 liters now, according to a plan published on the Alcohol Market Regulation Federal Serviceâ€™s Web site today. The World Health Organization estimates 8 liters as an â€œaccepted volume of consumption,â€ according to the service.

Medvedev in June told Health Minister Tatyana Golikova that Russiaâ€™s alcohol consumption is â€œcolossalâ€ and asked the government by today to find ways to fight excessive drinking and bootlegged vodka production. Illegal spirits make up about half of total alcohol consumption in Russia, lawmaker Viktor Zvagelskiy said yesterday in an interview in Moscow.

â€œMore than 23,000 people are dying from random alcohol poisoning currently in Russia,â€ the market regulation service said in the plan. â€œMore than 75,000 people are dying from illnesses caused by excessive drinking.â€

Vodka makes up 88 percent of spirits sales in Russia, the worldâ€™s biggest alcohol market, the Moscow-based investment bank Troika Dialog said in a report in September.

Price Controls

The regulatorâ€™s proposal includes setting prices for alcoholic products that take into account the amount of ethanol in them; limiting alcohol retail sales by time and location; limiting alcohol ads; and banning events such as beer and wine festivals and contests, according to the document.

President Medvedev in September proposed banning the sale of bottles and cans of low-alcohol beverages that are larger than 330 milliliters (11 ounces). The leader also said he wants mandatory health warnings that cover at least 20 percent of the container for all alcoholic products.

The government will regulate vodka prices, banning stores from charging less than 89 rubles ($3.07) for a half-liter bottle of vodka as of Jan. 1, Interfax reported Nov. 19, citing state officials.

Russia next year will also triple the excise tax on beer to 9 rubles a liter from 3 rubles. The bill increases the tax to 10 rubles in 2011 and 12 rubles in 2012.

Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introduced prohibition of alcohol in the country to crack down on Russiaâ€™s epic drinking. The restrictions spurred the production of moonshine, while pharmacies saw a spike in sales of rubbing alcohol. In July, Medvedev praised Gorbachevâ€™s campaign.

This year Russians didnâ€™t cut down drinking vodka because of the economic turmoil, according to a study by Nielsen Co. Sales of vodka and other hard liquors climbed 5 percent in December 2008 through July, more than the 3 percent growth for dairy products, the Oct. 15 study showed.