Ministry of Industry and Trade approved mandatory digital marking of caviar

2023

The Ministry of Industry and Trade approved the mandatory digital labeling of caviar

Ministry of Industry and Trade approved the mandatory digital labeling of sturgeon and salmon fish caviar - it will be launched on April 1, 2024. This was told by the Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Ekaterina Prizhedeva during a working trip to mid-September Sakhalin Oblast 2023.

By this time, according to the press service of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, an experiment is underway in Russia to label red and black caviar. It will last until March 31, 2024. According to Ekaterina Prizhedeva, the participants in the experiment have the opportunity to test all technical and business processes related to product labeling by means of identification, now.

Caviar labeling will become mandatory from April 1, 2024

During the meeting of the commission, Ekaterina Prizhedeva also noted the active participation of the Sakhalin region in the experiment on caviar labeling (two tests have already been carried out in the region), as well as the readiness of the region to label soft drinks. At the event, Chairman of the Government of the Sakhalin Region Alexei Belik said that 100% of regional manufacturers are ready ahead of schedule for labeling soft drinks in polymer and glass packaging, which will begin in December 2023.

According to Mikhail Dubin, chairman of the board of directors of the CRPT (operator of the state labeling system), by mid-September 2023, Russia has implemented a technical capability and all equipment is available to launch mandatory labeling of sturgeon and salmon fish caviar.

There are many different form factors in this group, solutions for which have already been found when launching labeling in other product groups. But at the same time, we believe that it is also important for caviar producers to conduct testing at the enterprises themselves - this can be implemented in an experiment. There is plenty of equipment for labeling on the market, "he said.[1]

Digital marking of red and black caviar launched in Russia

On April 15, 2023, an experiment on digital labeling of red and black caviar was launched in Russia. The corresponding government decree was signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. More than 30 companies expressed a desire to take part in the pilot project, which will last until March 31, 2024. Among them are Meridian, the fishing company Diana (part of the Russian Caviar House), the Socra plant, the Vityaz Car company, the Priozerskaya Fish Company and Rybstandart.

The experiment will not require business costs, Revaz Yusupov, deputy general director of the Center for the Development of Advanced Technologies (labeling operator), told TASS. According to him, the marking will not affect the cost of caviar. Marking codes will be provided to companies free of charge. The authorities expect that it will also be possible to identify cases of illegal turnover of caviar due to the traceability of each bank from the plant to the consumer.

Experiment on digital marking of red and black caviar started

According to the Federal Agency for Fishery, the shadow market for red caviar in Russia exceeds 4 billion rubles. Therefore, according to representatives of the department, product tracking at all stages of the distribution chain is one of the most effective measures to combat counterfeit products and, as a result, with poaching. Rosrybolovstvo considers labeling a systemic solution to the problem of illegal circulation of caviar.

On March 14, 2023, the National Union for the Protection of Consumer Rights (NSZPP), in a letter to Mikhail Mishustin, said that about 80% of the total volume of red caviar sold in the Russian Federation by the largest chain stores is sold with serious violations and is unsafe for consumers.

On the part of the state, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Digital Development, Rosselkhoznadzor, Rosrybolovstvo, the Federal Tax Service, the Federal Customs Service, Rospotrebnadzor, Rosaccreditatsiya and the FSB should provide an experiment on digital labeling of red and black caviar. The operator of the information system was Operator-CRPT LLC^[2]

2022: Ministry of Industry and Trade launches digital labeling of sturgeon and salmon caviar

The experiment on the labeling of sturgeon and salmon caviar in Russia will begin on November 1, 2022 and will last until August 31, 2023. This is stated in the corresponding draft government decree developed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

It is assumed that the experiment will be carried out in relation to sturgeon caviar (TN VED EAEU 1604,31,000,0) and salmon (red caviar, TN VED 1604,32,001,0) fish species. The participation of companies in the experiment in accordance with the proposal of the labeling operator "Operator-CRPT" will be free.

Ministry of Industry and Trade begins digital labeling of red caviar

Producers, importers and sellers of caviar, electronic document management operators and fiscal data operators participate in the experiment on a voluntary basis. To participate in the experiment, they must submit applications to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

According to TASS, the head of the commodity group of the operator of the National System of Digital Labeling of Goods "Honest Sign" Konstantin Serezhenkov, a pilot project on digital labeling of caviar products will allow, together with the industry, to develop unified approaches to the introduction of labeling and take into account the peculiarities of the production of these products. The Center for the Development of Promising Technologies is ready to ensure that the experiment is carried out on the specified dates. He recalled that in support of the experiment, they have already spoken in the Federation Council, the State Duma, the relevant authority - Rosrybolovstvo and the key fishing region - Kamchatka Territory.

The experiment with marking red caviar is unlikely to be effective, said Georgy Martynov, president of the Association of Fisheries Enterprises of Primorye. In his opinion, the marking of red caviar will affect its quality, but may lead to an increase in price. The expert added that industries located far from the seas and coastal areas are also producing red caviar.

To do this, they usually use frozen raw materials. Finished products in this case often turn out to be more watery in consistency, but their taste qualities do not suffer because of this.^[3]

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