On December 10, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree stating that the duty would be introduced as early as January 1, 2021.
To date, anyone wishing to sell sunflower seeds outside the Russian Federation must pay a duty of 6.5%, at least 9.75 euros per ton. In two weeks everything will change: the duty will grow almost 5 times and will amount to 30%, not less than 165 euros per ton.
The duty on rapeseed will be exactly the same, even though now there is none at all.
Why were such drastic measures necessary?
The main reason is to somehow return the balance to the oil market.
As noted in the Russian Fat and Oil Union, today many sunflower and rapeseed producers are «hiding» in anticipation of price increases and are in no hurry to put their products on the market. As a result, prices begin to rise.
It is also seen by ordinary consumers, looking at the price tag on vegetable oil in the store.
In addition, manufacturers are tempted by high prices and low duties abroad. For example, Turkey introduced a zero duty on sunflower this year.
As a result, prices began to rise in the domestic market. Sunflower has grown to 40 thousand rubles per ton, and oil — to almost 90 thousand rubles.
It is noteworthy that the sunflower harvest in Russia is kept at about 13 million tons per year, while exports are growing rapidly.
A year ago, Russian exporters sold overseas 360 thousand tons, this year — 1.25 million tons.
If nothing is done, then in the new season the figure could double even more.
Against this background, in Russia, no more than 70% of the capacities of enterprises producing oil are loaded.
Producers do not seek to interact with them, because it is more profitable to sell crops abroad. As a result, the country is losing money.
After all, oil, as already mentioned, costs twice as much as sunflower. And it would be much more profitable to export it, at the same time fully loading Russian converters.
But now, with the introduction of the duty, the situation may change: Russian exporters will have to “moderate their appetites” and reorient themselves to the domestic market. And this is the goal of the new resolution.
In addition, this week the government set the maximum price for sunflower oil (95 rubles per liter wholesale, 110 at retail) and granulated sugar (36 and 45 rubles, respectively).
All this is needed in order to contain the rise in prices and ensure food security in the country.
