Participants of the dairy market do not have time to prepare for electronic certification
The transition to an electronic system of accounting of products will require at least a year, specify in the Advisory Council on foreign investment. Otherwise, there are possible supply disruptions to the Federal trade networks and full stop of supplies to state institutions, threaten market participants. However, the Ministry of agriculture considers the risks to be minimal.
The co-coordinator of the working group on development of the consumer market of the Advisory Council on foreign investments (FIAC; created by the Federal government), President of Nestle in Russia and Eurasia Marcial Rolland wrote to Deputy Minister of economy Savva Shipov a letter about the consequences of the introduction of EVC for finished dairy products in Russia. “Kommersant” has a copy of the appeal of May 8, its authenticity was confirmed by two sources on the market. According to Mr. Rollan, in mid-2018, finished dairy products were excluded from the list of goods subject to EVC, due to high operational risks for the industry. But at the end of April 2019, there were published the orders of the Ministry of agriculture, which again include these products into the list. According to the documents, since July 1, 2019 electronic veterinary certificates should be issued, in particular, for cheese, butter, cottage cheese, and since November 1 — for milk, dairy products and ice cream.
EMU is introduced to track livestock products from production to sale to avoid falsification and tax avoidance. EVC is processed through the automated information system "Mercury" of the Rosselkhoznadzor.
The essence of the claims, which is outlined by Marcial Rolland in a letter to the official on behalf of the entire industry, boils down to the fact that manufacturers do not have time to prepare for the new rules.
Based on the experience of interaction between suppliers and networks, you need at least eight months only to work out the correct format of interaction within the framework of the new requirements, Mr. Rollan writes. And the preparation for the introduction of EVC for new categories will require at least a year, the letter says. At the same time, Mr. Rollan notes, the order of the Ministry of agriculture did not pass the regulatory impact assessment and the business did not have the opportunity to give its assessment of the initiative.
The FIAC believes that the Ministry of agriculture had to conduct a preliminary assessment of the readiness of the dairy market participants to implement EVC. The Ministry of economy did not answer the questions of “Kommersant”. The Ministry of agriculture prepared for “Kommersant” a consolidated comment of the Ministry and the Rosselkhoznadzor as the operator of “Mercury”: it follows that the orders were adopted in the prescribed manner and all issues regarding certification were discussed with representatives of the industry.
Dmitry Patrushev, head of the Ministry of agriculture, in February 2019:
"We will try to minimize the risks that the system may face with the introduction of electronic veterinary certification for the dairy industry".
However, the producers interviewed by “Kommersant” insist that the introduction of EVC threatens with interruptions in the supply of dairy products to Federal trade networks and a complete stop in the supply to non-chain stores, which for the most part are not connected to “Mercury”. For the same reason, shipment to catering enterprises and state institutions, including kindergartens and schools is under the threat, adds a source of “Kommersant” in a large food company.
Many outlets in principle are not ready for "Mercury", and the system itself has significant drawbacks that cannot be eliminated in a short time, confirmed in PepsiCo (brands "Domik v derevne", "Vesely molochnik"). They also predict the emergence of difficulties with the shipment of finished dairy products. In Danone ("Prostokvashino") said that they also support the position of the FIAC, set out in the letter.
The Director of the Department for the implementation of industry-wide projects and programs of X5 Retail Group ("Pyaterochka", "Perekrestok", "Karusel"), Dmitry Rusakov said that the company share the concerns about the timing of spreading of EVC on dairy products, because they received a significant number of formal complaints from the largest representatives of the industry on a part-time willingness to work in the system. According to him, in order to avoid interruptions in the flow of products on the shelves, it will require significant additional costs for all participants in the supply chain. The Ministry of agriculture, however, assured that the introduction of EVC will not lead to interruptions in the supply of dairy products.
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