Wine is not for everyone

A sharp increase in excise taxes will lead to an increase in prices and influx of fake products

The government has introduced amendments to the State Duma to the Tax Code, for the first time since 2017, raising excise taxes on wine and wine drinks. If the parliament will approve the initiative, then from 2020 the bets will increase almost double: from 18 to 31 rubles per 1 liter of quiet wine and from 36 to 40 rubles per 1 liter of sparkling. As a result, the retail prices for wine will increase by 15–20%, they warned in the public organization Opora Russia, while noting that the industry would not withstand the rate of more than 25 rubles per liter.

- We urge to stop the growth of the tax burden, because the industry has just begun to recover. Even if you increase taxes, you need to do this smoothly, for a long period. Imagine that your income tax was 13%, and after six months, 26%will deduct from your salary. How can you relate to this? - Set the president of the “Oporas of Russia” Alexander Kalinin.

The low -income consumers buying budget wine will suffer the most strongly from increasing excise taxes, said Vadim Drobiz, director of the Center for Research of the Federal and Regional Alcohol markets (digits).

- We have approximately 50% of the wine sold at a price of up to 200 rubles, and 90% of the total wine is drunk by women.

Wine, which costs from 130 to 200 rubles, will rise in price by about 20%. Therefore, for women from low social strata, this is catastrophic growth.

The Ministry of Finance explains this step “the need to bring excise taxes on various alcohol with a comparable alcohol content equal to the degree of harmfulness of the product,” wrote the Vedomosti. In addition, the growth of excise taxes is needed to comply with the WTO norms requiring equalizing bets on Russian and imported wines (now Russian winemakers use a number of tax preferences compared to importers).

However, experts are convinced that government motives are exclusively fiscal, and care for the health of citizens and international trade norms are used as a preposition to increase fees to the budget.

- There are no norms of the WTO, no one observes them. This is sucked out of the finger. And in the budget and so a huge surplus, why still increase it - we do not know.

The only ones who will be beneficial for an increase are manufacturers of vodka and other strong drinks, and cheap ones, ”says Kalinin.

Consumers will not be able to switch to cheaper wine, because it is difficult to make wine - there is no powder products in this segment, says Mikhail Smirnov, editor -in -chief of Alcohol.ru.

- The consumption of imported wine will grow, which will be comparable in price with domestic, which means that Russian manufacturers will lose. Plus, underground production of alcohol, counterfeit and fakes will begin to develop with terrible force. Instead of buying a bottle of wine, a person will buy a bottle of fake vodka.

A simultaneous increase in excise tax rates on wine and wine drinks (at least 50% consisting of wine materials, the rest - various additives) will lead to the creation of a huge market for illegal wine -making products, I agree to the crusher.

- Today we have a lot of illegal vodka, which is produced in artisanal conditions and sold in unlicensed retail: in kiosks, from hand and so on. When the prices for natural wine and wine drinks are practically equal, a large amount of illegal wine -making products will also be added here at a price of 80-100 rubles.

The proposed increase in excise taxes will make the wine less accessible to the consumer and thereby complicate the process of switching to drinks with a lower alcohol content, although it is precisely this goal that needs to be strive. In Russia now, there is no trend for an increase in wine consumption instead of stronger alcohol, says a crusher.

- In Soviet times, consumption was like this: wine - 16 liters per capita, winery - 28 liters. Today we consume 3.5 liters, winery - 7.5 liters. The difference is evident. At the same time, beer consumption was 24 liters per soul, and now - 50 liters. Strong alcohol - 10 liters, now - 15-16 liters.

That is, in Soviet times, we were a wine-vodka country, and now we are a country of beer. There is practically no increase in wine consumption, the main consumer is young girls and women from 22 to 45 years old.

However, they should not worry about Russian winemakers: they will throw all resources to find a compromise with the government, which is actually interested in supporting the winery industry. Already now the bill provides for a tax deduction for excise taxes for the use of wine materials produced in Russia. In theory, this should allow domestic manufacturers to maintain an excise rate at the same level.

But you will not envy the consumer in this situation - he will not receive any compensations for rising prices and reducing the quality of products. Many fellow citizens will have to rejoice at the achievements of domestic winemaking behind a bottle of vodka.