Starting January 15, 2024, Russia mandated labeling for alcoholic products across all packaging types for beer and low‑alcohol beverages, including aluminum cans. This development was reported by Interfax. The regulation builds on earlier labeling steps that covered beverages in kegs, as well as glass and plastic bottles, and now extends to tap sales. Retailers selling draft beer must, from that date, transmit data about equipment connections and sales volumes to the labeling system through cash registers. The operator of the Honest Sign system noted that more than 54,500 retail participants selling draft beer are already registered in the state labeling program and have confirmed readiness for the new phase of marking.
The rollout of labeling and traceability for beer products is scheduled to continue through 2025. A forthcoming milestone is the prohibition of selling draft beer without a labeling code beginning April 1, 2024. Kirill Volkov, head of the CRPT special consumer goods department, highlighted a current 20.8% rise in legally produced beer and low‑alcohol beverages. Industry observers anticipate similar growth across the supply chain once sales traceability is fully in effect.
Russia had already introduced mandatory labeling for beer and low‑alcohol products on March 1, 2023. Manufacturers were required to register with the Honest Sign system, with labeling for beers on kegs starting April 1 and labels on glass and plastic bottles beginning October 1.
In December, Valentina Matvienko suggested the possibility of imposing a special excise tax on medicinal alcohol. Earlier measures also included discussions about restricting the sale of non‑alcoholic beer to young people.