In Russia, monitoring of dairy products for the presence of palm oil has begun

As the parliamentarian clarified, inspections on the ground will be carried out by activists from the Russian Union of Rural Youth. The reason for launching the monitoring was numerous complaints from citizens about the unclear placement of products in stores.

"Today, products with milk fat substitutes and those without are often placed chaotically, without clear visual separation. The price tags are the same color, and information about the ingredients is often written in small print, which misleads consumers," explained Yulia Oglobina.

At the same time, she emphasized that the addition of palm oil to dairy products is not prohibited in itself. However, the law requires mandatory consumer notification and separate placement of such products. In practice, however, products with milk fat substitutes are often sold at the price of natural ones, allowing manufacturers to make excessive, unjustified profits.

“For example, a spread costs about 60 rubles, while natural butter is around 150. But due to the unclear placement, the consumer often can’t immediately understand what they’re paying for,” the deputy pointed out.

In addition, Yulia Oglobina noted that the current regulatory requirements for the display of dairy products are extremely vague. The wording about "visual separation and labeling" of products, she said, allows retail chains and manufacturers to interpret the rules to their own advantage. Detailed methodological guidelines from the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Rospotrebnadzor lost their validity back in 2023, and no new regulations have been adopted since.

In this regard, according to the deputy, proposals are being prepared to adopt regulatory acts that will establish clear requirements for the placement and labeling of dairy products.

Yulia Oglobina also reminded that a fine of up to 30,000 rubles is currently provided for violations of product placement rules, which, in her opinion, is not effective enough when it comes to large retail chains. However, if it is proven that incorrect placement misleads consumers, another article of the Administrative Offenses Code may apply—with a maximum fine of up to 500,000 rubles.

The results of the monitoring and possible legislative initiatives will be discussed after the inspections in the regions are completed.