OREANDA-NEWS. On 01 June 2009 was announced, that the State Control Committee of Belarus suggests establishing a special importer of beer, the committee said in a statement.

According to the committee, the move, which was initiated by Belarusian brewers, will make imports transparent. No import restrictions are planned, the committee noted.

“The State Control Committee does not support limitations. We are against illegal sales, which strip the budget of billions of rubles,” the statement reads.

The committee claims it has revealed illegal beer trade schemes.

“The institute of the special importer has been discussed before, but it does not mean we are going to have it for sure,” the statement reads.

Belarus produced 10.4 million decaliters of beer in January-April 2009, down 5.6% year-on-year; sales were at 7.174 million decaliters, up 4.8% year-on-year.