Russia Steps up Ban on Georgian Alcohol
In a letter sent to the head of the Russian customs service Aleksandr Zherikhov on April 4, Russia’s chief sanitary inspector Gennady Onishenko recommends that the country’s customs service ban the import of spirits and sparkling wine from Georgia and Moldova.
On March 27 Russia’s chief sanitary stopped issuing “sanitary-epidemiological conclusions” for Georgian and Moldovan wines, citing “violation of requirements of the state sanitary-epidemiological rules and norms.”
“In order to prevent a threat to the life and health of consumers, starting from April 5 I will suspend the operation of the already issued sanitary-epidemiological conclusions on cognac, wine (including sparking wine) and wine material, produced in Moldova and Georgia,” the letter reads.
Russian daily Kommersant published an article on April 5 titled “Wine Producers Seek Truth in Court,” which says that Russian companies importing Georgian and Moldovan wines importers intend to sue Gennady Onishenko for libel and demand cancellation of his instructions on banning the import of wines and spirits from Georgia and Moldova.
“While banning import of Moldovan and Georgian wines, Mr. Onishenko has not provide any evidence proving their [wines’] poor quality. Beside this, we are also banned from selling those wines, which already have certificates [from the Russian authorities],” Kommersant quoted representatives from the “World of Wines” company importing Georgian and Moldovan wines in Russia.
