The government decided to set price limits for butter and sugar after Putin's criticism

The government immediately reacted to Vladimir Putin's demand to reduce food prices: according to Forbes and RBC , at a meeting with First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov, the introduction of marginal prices for certain products was discussed, for example, 45 rubles per kilogram of sugar and 110 rubles per liter of sunflower oil .

According to RBC, at a meeting with Belousov, the government has already decided to set marginal prices for sugar - 36 rubles in the wholesale market and 45 rubles in the retail market, and for sunflower oil - 95 and 110 rubles per liter, respectively. As the publication emphasizes, it is planned that the decision will be secured by an agreement between market participants.

According to Forbes, the introduction of "target prices" for sunflower oil was proposed by the Ministry of Agriculture. “It is desirable to do this before the new year, so that the holidays are already comfortable for people,” a participant in the meeting at the ministry told Forbes.

According to Rosstat, in November, annual inflation reached 4.4%, going beyond the target of the Central Bank. Food inflation accelerated to 5.8% in annual terms, while the growth in consumer prices for fruits and vegetables reached 12.4%. The rise in prices caused the displeasure of the authorities: as Forbes explains, the topic of food prices is sensitive, moreover, because of this, the popularity of Russian authorities is falling.

On December 9, Vladimir Putin was outraged by the high prices for products - sunflower oil, sugar, flour, bread. “There is an explanation for this - this is the dynamics of prices on world markets and an attempt to adjust domestic prices to world ones, as well as to use export opportunities,” Putin called the reason.

On December 10, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin instructed the government to look into the situation and reproached them for "letting it take its course." “You don’t have to take advantage of people. In the current difficult situation, this is unacceptable. It is necessary to take decisive measures and deal with pricing,” the prime minister said .