RUSSIA HAS signalled a renewed attempt to get to grips with rife alcoholism, as the government drafts a law that would raise taxes on beer by 300 per cent and ban its sale in the country’s ubiquitous kiosks.
The industry and trade ministry has drafted the law following last month’s order by Russian president Dmitry Medvedev for measures to battle what he termed a “national disaster”.
The order followed a report by the public chamber, Russia’s chief oversight body, that found alcohol contributed to some 500,000 deaths a year – a figure 16 times higher than that cited by federal health officials.
The draft law targets beer, an increasingly trendy drink in Russia but one that still lags far behind vodka in popularity. Many Russians doubt its alcoholic strength.
“Beer, if consumed in moderation and in the right circumstances, cannot lead to alcoholism,” said Vladimir Kuznetsov of the Russian Beer Producers’ Union.
Vodka accounted for 66 per cent of alcohol sales in 2008 and 50 per cent this year so far. But as much as half of the vodka market is illegal and untaxed. Beer sales comprised 25 per cent of sales last year.