About 45 illegal tobacco factories have been closed in Russia in five years against the background of the introduction of labeling in this industry, and tax revenues and the number of legal productions have increased, Mikhail Dubin, head of the operator of the Honest Sign labeling system - the Center for the Development of Advanced Technologies (CRPT), told RIA Novosti in an interview.
Labeling of the tobacco market in Russia began in 2019, labeling codes are applied, among other things, to cigarettes, vapes and disposable electronic cigarettes.
"During the implementation of the system, 45 illegal tobacco factories were closed in the country, and 18 production facilities were legalized. In addition, today Russia is probably one of the very few countries in the world, if not the only one, where all tobacco products are subject to labeling strictly in accordance with the recommendations of the World Health Organization," Dubin said.
In turn, tax revenues to the budget from tobacco products have "increased by more than 2 times" during this time.
Source: