RUSSIA
Russian business ombudsman, Boris Titov, said in an annual report to the Russian president that 35-40% of tobacco products sold on the Russian market are illegally produced.
In the report, Titov said, “According to most cautious estimates, the share of illegal products has already reached 35-40 %, which deals a serious blow to the budget of the Russian Federation, not to mention the quality of the falsified products and the scope of illegal production.”
He also suggested creating a unified state mechanism to control the tobacco market, similar to the Unified States automatic information system for alcohol products (EGAIS), developed by the department for state regulation of economy and the ministry of economic development and trade.
This computerized system gathers information about the use of raw materials as well as production volumes and left-over raw materials. Under Russian law, all manufacturers, wholesalers, and importers must register with EGAIS.
The Russian finance ministry was reported to have earlier said that legislation enabling a similar control mechanism on the tobacco market is to be passed during the parliament’s spring session. Currently, the government discusses various projects to enhance state control over the tobacco industry at all stages of its manufacturing and trade.