Russia launches probe into soaring butter prices amidst crisis
In Russia, the issue of rapidly rising butter prices has become significant enough to warrant the attention of the highest authorities. The prosecutor's office has decided to investigate the cause of the sharp increase in this essential food product's cost.
2:02 PM EST, December 14, 2024
According to Reuters, the investigation into butter prices will be conducted by the Federal Antimonopoly Service, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The process is overseen by Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov, who has initiated inspections of dairy plants.
Measures to protect consumer rights and counteract unjustified price increases will be implemented if irregularities are found. However, the situation in the Russian dairy sector has underlying factors, as the rise in milk fat prices is a global issue affecting not only Russia, as reported by farmer.pl.
Changes in the global dairy market also impact prices in the European Union, the Middle East, and North Africa. As Reuters highlights, butter prices in Russia have risen by as much as 26% over the year, mainly due to increased production costs, including the cost of raw milk.
Food price inflation in Russia and Ukraine is further influenced by the ongoing conflict between these countries and rising labor costs, which have been particularly felt by Russian dairy plants.
Interventions by the Federal Antimonopoly Service led to discussions with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev, after which Russia decided to start importing butter from countries like Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
This decision sparked some controversy as the list of imported products also included butter from Ukraine, although its share in the Russian market remains minimal.
Butter prices in Russia are rising
Although Russia has long imported milk fats, this does not significantly affect the overall state of the sector, which largely exports processed products such as cheese and ice cream. After the embargo on food from the EU, Russia initially replenished the missing supply by importing from New Zealand and Argentina, but trade with these countries has significantly decreased in recent years.
Currently, Russia is sending more and more dairy products to China, Kazakhstan, and Egypt, further straining domestic supply.
Russia currently ranks seventh in the world (approximately 71 billion pounds) and second in Europe after Germany (approximately 73 billion pounds) in terms of raw milk production. The price increase has become so severe for Russians that butter blocks in stores are now placed in anti-theft packaging. On October 29th, a theft was reported at a "Pyaterochka" supermarket in Moscow, where two foreigners stole 25 packages of butter.
According to "The Moscow Times", despite this, butter is not the product experiencing the highest price increase in Russia. Data from the statistical office shows that since the beginning of the year, potato prices have risen by 56.4%.
