OREANDA-NEWS  From April 1 of this year, mandatory labeling of beer and low-alcohol beverages in kegs will begin in Russia. From October 1, labeling will affect beverages in glass and PET containers, and from January 15, 2024 - in other types of packaging. The introduction of labeling was preceded by an experiment that lasted almost two years, in which 359 companies participated, RIA Novosti reports.

Labeling of beer in kegs is carried out using stickers. However, the next stages of labeling — on plastic and glass bottles, as well as on an aluminum can — will be much more technologically complex. Losses from the wrong choice of application technology can reach tens and hundreds of millions of rubles per year for large manufacturers.

The introduction of labeling is due to the high proportion of illegal turnover of beer and beer drinks. In 2021, the share of illegal turnover increased by 9.4 percentage points, reaching 16.6% of total production. The falling budget revenues from exciseless beer are estimated annually to 30 billion rubles.

It is noted that labeling will not affect prices for consumers, since the contribution of labeling to cost growth will not exceed 0.43% over six years. The budgetary effect of the introduction of labeling is estimated at more than 38.6 billion rubles per year, while the balance of income and expenses of the state and business will amount to 265.1 billion rubles.

Earlier, Roskachestvo specialists began checking Coca-Cola and Pepsi analogues, which are sold in Russia after the departure of the original brands. The reason was that consumers are increasingly complaining about the taste of these drinks.