Russia introduced on Friday a minimum price...

From January 1, any 0.5l vodka bottle selling at below 89 rubles (almost $3) will be outlawed.

The price ban is one of the first government steps toward regulating the domestic alcohol market.

First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov said earlier other measures in the sphere would be accomplished by July 1, 2010. Theses include the licensing of alcohol supplies, the introduction of a unified excise duty on alcohol, and tougher responsibility for the production and marketing of fake vodka.

Experts said the minimum vodka price and tougher punishment for failure to comply with it would enable controlling bodies to take action against wrongdoing on the part of retailers all across Russia.

However, representatives of large food chains said the new measure was unlikely to affect their sales. They also said they could substitute more expensive vodka with other spirits, including wine and beer.

Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introduced prohibition in

Pages: [1] 2