"We have formed entire branches of consumer goods production"

The draft law "on the Russian shelf" is fully ready and will be submitted to the State Duma in the autumn session, Roman Chekushov, State Secretary and Deputy head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, told Izvestia in an interview at the WEF. At the first stage, the mandatory share of domestic wine in stores will be 20%, but later it can be increased, special attention will be paid to the promotion of Russian beer. Russian Russian cuisine and ready—to-eat standards are also being worked on in the department. The latter is also relevant for Russian restaurants opening abroad. Roman Chekushov also said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade supported the initiatives of the regions to ban vaping and expressed confidence that counterfeiting and counterfeiting would soon disappear from online platforms.

"We are determined to ensure that the development of our own production proceeds in a progressive manner"

— Roman Andreevich, the draft law "on the Russian regiment", prepared by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, has been discussed in Russia for several years. It sets the mandatory share of Russian goods on store shelves to 50%. What is his fate?

— The draft law "on the Russian regiment" is fully prepared. It has been coordinated with the necessary federal executive authorities and is already being finalized at the government site. We expect that the bill will be submitted to the State Duma during the autumn session and together with the deputies we will actively bring it to the status of a federal law. The document provides for the government's right to introduce quotas for certain groups of goods for domestic manufacturers and brands. According to the bill, not only the product must be Russian, but the brand, i.e. the trademark, must also belong to the Russian beneficiary. This will allow us to create national brands that are recognizable to our consumers. And, of course, the bill does not restrict our foreign partners in any way. Foreign goods will also be displayed on the shelf in stores and marketplaces. We only ask for a certain amount of representation of Russian goods in those places that are most accessible to consumers.

— You said that the share of Russian wine on store shelves should be 20%, but today this domestic product is already on the shelves, probably about 20%, and maybe even more. Why is this indicator selected and when will it be increased?

— I will even tell you more that by the end of 2024, the volume of sales of Russian wine amounted to more than 50% of the total sales of this drink in our stores. But we are not striving to increase the direct volume of sales, but rather to ensure the representation of different brands of wine, different types, varieties. Here, the level of 20% is not always reached, and in some places even 10%. Moreover, there are also problematic issues regarding the representation of Russian wine in public catering establishments. Therefore, the figure of 20% is a compromise. Of course, Russian wine producers are ready to provide more different brands, varieties, and types of wine, but catering companies and our retail chains fear that they will not be able to provide such a level. Therefore, the ministry has proposed to stop at 20% for now, but to provide for the government's right to review this share upward.

I would suggest looking at how this provision of the law will work in the first year, how Russian wines will appear on the menus and wine lists of restaurants and cafes, and after that, in a year, maybe we will return to the need to review this volume.

— Does strong alcohol fall under such quotas?

— So far we have not planned to make quotas for strong alcohol. Firstly, because if we're talking about wine, it's a whole culture. Wine is not a drink in itself, it is an integrated production system, the development of its own not only winemaking, but also viticulture, it is a culture of consumption and production. For example, you know that such areas of tourism as winery tourism and wine tours are also developing today. It's becoming fashionable and interesting. That is why it is important for us to promote the Russian wine brand as a whole.

If we talk about other drinks, I would suggest that we focus on our beer drinks first. Why? Because beer, firstly, also presupposes a vertically integrated industry — from the field to the shelf. Secondly, because already the majority of absolute beer producers in the territory of the Russian Federation are actually controlled by Russian enterprises or managed by domestic teams. And here we can definitely safely talk about the development of our own beer production. Therefore, together with the industry, together with the Ministry of Agriculture, we will look, first of all, at this area.

— Taking into account the fact that the Germans are currently experiencing big problems in beer production, the Russian producer will probably have even more chances to take a share in the local market.

— We will not focus on the problems or successes of our colleagues or competitors. We are determined to ensure that the development of our own production proceeds in a progressive manner. In recent years, we have developed entire industries for the production of consumer goods, which have become not just recognizable, but trustworthy on the part of customers. It is also important to note that our manufacturers are able to fully meet the demand for some product categories. For example, for individual items of household chemicals, up to 95% of Russian goods are already represented on store shelves today. Therefore, we will not focus on other partners, we will develop our own production.

Russian Russian cuisine "Consumers should know that when they go to Russian restaurants, they will try native Russian recipes."

— Russian cuisine is also actively developing now. Does the Ministry of Industry and Trade intend to develop its national standard? What will he assume?

— We have started this work, a special expert group has been created. Russian Russian cuisine was formed not by senior executives or officials or business representatives, but by historians who know how Russian cuisine was formed, leading brand chefs and chefs who work with Russian cuisine today, and, of course, representatives of the industry and catering companies.

We don't have the task to regulate everything so that enterprises that were called enterprises of Russian cuisine would produce only one type of dish according to a certain recipe and would not have the right to bring something interesting to the consumer. Russian Russian cuisine is our goal, so that consumers know for sure that when they enter restaurants of Russian cuisine, they will taste native Russian recipes and that, in general, the restaurant's surroundings and the service provided there will correspond specifically to Russian traditions. That's what's important. And we will not do this, of course, to regulate the formulation so that the product cannot be changed. Actually, we have an idea to extend these standards to entrepreneurs who will open restaurants of Russian cuisine abroad. The standard will also be voluntary, but obtaining a certificate of compliance with such a standard will allow consumers to be sure that this restaurant complies with all the principles of Russian cuisine. The Working Group will submit such a standard for consideration by the technical committee by the end of the year.

— Are there plans to develop standards and ready meals? What will they regulate, will they be mandatory and when can they come into force?

— This is a very important topic, because it is safety for our citizens, for their health. And also because the sales of ready-made food in our retail outlets are growing at a much faster pace than the general retail trade or the sale of some other products. It's a whole industry. Here, again, we do not have the task of regulating the recipes, the attractiveness of a dish that is sold in a ready-to-eat format. The first task is to determine what a ready meal is in order to clearly describe the standards of cooking and packaging of dishes. These are terminology, general concepts, and general principles in the preparation and storage of ready-made food. Next, let's see if there will be a need to adopt specific regulations that will regulate the time of use of products, their storage and the production process itself. It may not be necessary, because in general we have requirements for food production and cooking.

— Recently, the governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region, Gleb Nikitin, at a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, proposed giving the regional authorities the authority to ban the Internet. What do the Ministry of Industry and Trade think about this initiative?

— There is a professional position that is related to the fact that we support the development of the trade industry, and therefore, in each individual case, of course, we need to look at economic factors. But in general, the ministry, myself personally and the minister, of course, support all measures that limit the spread of vaping among our population, regardless of age. Because the Ministry of Health, as the body responsible for the health of our citizens, does not give us guarantees that these funds are safe. We are ready to support the initiatives of the governors and see how such bans will be implemented in the regions in a pilot mode.

"We believe that it is necessary to extend the parallel import mechanism for 2026"

— Today, quite a lot of goods are supplied to the country through parallel imports. Will it be extended for 2026 and which products will be included in the lists?

— Yes, we believe that the parallel import mechanism should be extended for 2026. We will approach this carefully and will not rush into long-term extensions. We will look annually at whether it is necessary to extend this mechanism for the next period. For the past year, we have been gradually reducing the number of brands that are included in the parallel import mechanism. We also see a reduction in customs statistics. Moreover, the reduction is proceeding at a much faster pace than we are reducing the number of brands in the order. This suggests that such goods are less in demand in the territory of the Russian Federation.

I will cite the figures in June and July: the volume of goods imported through parallel imports amounted to $1.5 billion and $1.4 billion, respectively. During 2024, we recorded volumes averaging over $3bn. This is a significant drop, and we believe that this is a very good trend, as it indicates, firstly, that consumers have begun to use more Russian products or products made in friendly countries. We believe that those manufacturers who are willing to work openly and in accordance with legal norms in Russia should remain on the market. And our consumer does not complain, he is satisfied with the range of products, so we do not plan to develop or further increase the number of brands.

— This summer, Russia approved object-by-object licensing of alcohol retail trade. You will need to pay 65 thousand rubles for the license of one point in the city, and 20 thousand rubles for rural areas. Are there any results of this innovation yet? Why was such a relaxation of the countryside done?

— The initiator of the project is the Ministry of Finance, but in general we supported it. There were a lot of discussions, and such a compromise option turned out. It is only fair that a license should be obtained for each location, because in addition to the highly respected federal and regional retail chains that operate in partnership, which have many outlets, we also have small and medium-sized enterprises that are actually the "only store" or "only supermarket." And, of course, we must also support such entrepreneurs and equalize their rights and the costs they incur to form a license. The second point is rural areas. There are hard-to-reach territories, and there are those where it is inefficient to conduct business due to the small volume of goods, but we are obliged to provide any resident of any small settlement with the necessary products. Therefore, of course, an entrepreneur in a rural settlement should bear less expenses, otherwise he will simply close his shops.

We suggest that we look at how it will work during the year. And then, if necessary, we will prepare a proposal to increase or reduce trading payments.

"We are currently working on specific price ranges at the expert level"

— Not so long ago, the Ministry of Industry and Trade announced that it had agreed with the Ministry of Agriculture on a range of prices for socially important goods when concluding long-term contracts between producers and retail chains. When will this mechanism start working and what effect do you expect from it, because previously the ministry did not support state regulation of prices?

— We have not agreed on the price range, we have not reached it yet. The Ministry of Agriculture and I have agreed on approaches in which the state should participate in order to eliminate the so-called extremes, that is, sharp increases or falls in prices for both producers and consumers. Because it's equally bad when prices rise, for example, twice for some product during a calendar year - it's stressful for the buyer. It is also bad when they fall sharply — this is already stressful for the manufacturer, as he sometimes does not fit into his current expenses, is forced to sell at a loss, which may affect the preservation of his business. Therefore, we agreed on the principles that for a certain group of products (not necessarily all socially significant ones) we will propose setting a price range. That is, the minimum and maximum price. But this price range will definitely be different not only for different types of goods, but it should also have a regional coefficient of the subject. After all, each of them has different logistics, different concentrations of producers, and different consumer and purchasing power. We are located in the Far East, there are regions that are difficult to reach for the delivery of products, and, of course, logistics are expensive there, on the other hand, there are also increasing wage coefficients. All these factors need to be taken into account, so for now we are working on specific price ranges at the expert level. But I must say that, in general, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is not in favor of state regulation of prices because it can disrupt the balance of market supply and demand.

But since May, there has been a tendency not only to lower inflation, but actually to deflationary processes. From week to week, we see that food prices do not rise, and sometimes even decrease. And when the market has adjusted itself in this way, and the business takes a responsible approach to its obligations, of course, you should not rush to make any decisions. We now have the opportunity and time to work out all the factors that will influence the formation of the maximum and minimum prices.

— But still, can we say above which bar and below which price range will be set?

— It will be different for each of its products. That is, an egg is one price, milk is another, and potatoes are the third. These will be absolute numbers. The type of product, the region, the volume of its production will be determined, and only then the price range will be determined, which will take into account seasonality and logistical features.

— In the summer, it became known that Russia is discussing the possibility of supplying and localizing car production in Kyrgyzstan. What did we finally agree on? Which companies and which cars are we talking about?

— Our Kyrgyz partners are interested in attracting technologies, Russian manufacturers and investors to their economy. It is clear that the level of industrial production in Russia is high, and therefore our neighbors are interested in receiving our goods. But, of course, this is also a global trend for goods such as cars, trucks, agricultural machinery, and transport machinery. Partner countries are interested in localization of products and, often, even set conditions for the sale of goods on the market. This is a protective measure that is used all over the world, so we understand the desires of our partners to create their own production competencies. We are currently discussing such a pilot localization project with one of the manufacturers of passenger cars. We are currently analyzing demand, because any production must be efficient. These can be taxi cars, or they can be a natural replacement for right-hand drive vehicles, which are plentiful in Kyrgyzstan. But neighboring regions must also be considered in order for production to be efficient.

"I think that a large percentage of counterfeit goods will simply leave the marketplaces"

— This year, the retail industry has repeatedly raised the issue of banning discounts by marketplaces, which allegedly dump and lure customers away from stationary trade. What is the Ministry's position on this issue?

The first step has already been taken. The law "On the platform economy" has been adopted. However, it will enter into force with a slightly delayed period, from October 1, 2026. However, certain compromise positions have been reached as a result of negotiations with the industry, with marketplaces and with retail chains.

Discounts that will be provided on the marketplace at the expense of the manufacturer or seller of the product must be agreed with him. Here, the seller of the product has every right to influence the pricing policy that is carried out on the marketplace. This was a mandatory point for us, and we are already working with marketplaces on the application of these standards even before they enter into force. This is such an element of responsible self-regulation in the industry that when placing goods on marketplaces, it is imperative that they comply with the requirements established in the Russian Federation. That is, if the product is certified, then it is mandatory to check its certificate. If there should be a marking, then the site should check it. The third point is the complete exclusion of counterfeit goods turnover on marketplaces. And in this regard, we plan to continue the work that is being carried out together with government authorities to connect marketplace software to government information systems. In other words, there will actually be a real-time direct exchange of information about the product. The next step will be to block the possibility of displaying such a product if there is no automatic confirmation from the information system. That's where we're heading. I think that a large percentage of counterfeit goods will simply leave the marketplaces.

— Will the forgery disappear too?

— There are law enforcement measures — they saw, identified, seized, punished, banned from selling. There are preventive measures, which we are currently doing. There is a hypothesis, and it seems to us that it is correct, that if we automate the processes of product identification, that it is actually issued and traceable and has received all the certificates that are required, this will exclude the sale of counterfeit goods. Sound logic says that if the product is checked in the registered system, it means it is not falsified. Of course, there may be some unfair actions on the part of market participants, we will stop them, but they must be identified already during the legal committee.