Russia to Tighten Quality Control on Georgian Wine Import

In a statement released by ‘Rospotrebnadzor’, Russia will soon begin to control the quality of imported Georgian wine.

According to the statement, the quality of Georgian alcoholic beverages exported to Russia in the first half of 2018 does not comply with the technical regulations and the law on user rights. Due to these violations, 16 thousand liters of Georgian alcohol were banned from entering the Russian market.

The National Wine Agency of Georgia responded to the Rospotrebnadzor statement: “One of the main objectives of the National Wine Agency's activities is the promotion and control of high quality Georgian wine."

In 2017, according to amendments to the Law of Georgia on Vine and Wine, from January 1 of the current year, compulsory degustation of all categories of exported wine came into force. Before 1 January 2017, mandatory tasting was only subject to locally produced descriptive wines. The initiative came from the private sector and the goal was to enhance the quality of wine.

The National Wine Agency's Tasting Commission stopped 93 out of 4,813 samples within the first 6 months of the current year for verification of all categories of wine intended for export. In 2017, the number was estimated to be 299 out of 3,440 samples.

Legislative amendments also prohibited export of wine from Georgia to avoid Georgian wine falsification outside the country.

In addition, as a result of state and inspection controls carried out by the wine-producing companies, 15 samples out of 123 samples in the first 6 months did not correspond to the physical-chemical characteristics issued by the accredited laboratory, on the basis of which the exports of specific wines were refused. In 2017, 27 samples out of 469 were rejected for export.  

Today, among more than 50 countries, Russia still remains the largest export market for Georgian wine. According to the data of the first six months of the current year, 24 million bottles of wine have been exported, compared to the same period last year, a 24% hike.

The National Wine Agency believes that quality care is a continuous process and is ready to continue working in this direction with the private sector and relevant state structures to ensure that the absolute majority of tens of millions of bottles meet the relevant standards and requirements".

The value of Georgian exports to Russia amounted to $396,672, making Russia the first largest destination for Georgian exports, according to recent statistics. Russia remains one of the key markets for Georgian wine export, with 24,022,113 bottles exported in the first half of 2018.

By Anna Zhvania

Source: Imedinews.ge

Photo: Georgianwine.gov.ge

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