Russian shops secure butter as thefts rise amid shortages

Russia was at the forefront of the world's largest food import markets for years, particularly for butter and cheese imports.

Until 2022, butter came to Russia from all over the world. However, the situation has changed significantly since the invasion of Ukraine.

In 2022, Russia ranked 19th worldwide for importing butter from abroad. Over the last two years, imports have dropped tenfold—from 44,000 to 4,400 tons.

After Putin attacked Ukraine, Belarus remained the only butter supplier to the Russian market. However, it cannot fully meet the demand, even though its goods account for 15 percent of all Russian dairy products.

Minsk also noticed the crisis and decided to profit from it. The local Ministry of Agriculture raised prices for some goods sold in foreign trade contracts with Russia twelve times a year.

Therefore, Russia chose another route: it started buying butter from "friendly countries." According to their media, these include India and Iran. Kyrgyzstan is also a trade partner in the dairy industry, which increased butter exports to Russia by 34 percent in the last nine months.

For now, butter is still lacking, and prices have recently risen by 20 percent. This has led to one outcome: Russians have started stealing.

Due to the increasing number of thefts, stores have implemented precautionary measures, such as securing butter blocks in special containers.

The containers are additionally "chipped," so taking such a product out of the store will trigger an alarm.

"In a photo from a Russian store, we see butter in special containers with security chips," writes Anton Gerashchenko, an advisor to the President of Ukraine.

There is also a note on the refrigerator: "Dear customers, if you want to buy butter, please contact a store employee," it reads.

Source: X/AKI Press/OEC World/NZ Herald/WP