Export sales of butter and rennet cheese to be made via exchange auctions in Belarus

The Government of Belarus decided that export sales of butter and rennet cheese should be made via exchange auctions only. The Council of Ministers passed resolution #1410 on October 29. Juridical entities and sole traders should sell Belarus-made butter and rennet cheese via Belarusian Universal Commodity Exchange. The new regulations will not be applied to the contracts concluded earlier, as Belarusian customs bodies have already issued relevant certificates of supplies. Belarus’ Government tasked the Trade Ministry and the Minsk City Council jointly with the oblast executive committees to make a list of dairy products highly demanded in Minsk and to control their availability on a permanent basis. The resolution will help enhance efficiency of export of butter and cheese and create equal conditions for exporters, deputy chief of the head department of foreign economic activity of the Ministry of Agriculture and Foodstuffs Tamara Usacheva told in an interview with BelTA. Tamara Usacheva said that agricultural companies have been selling butter and cheese via the exchange for the past two months. This form of trade has proved successful. Since it has become mandatory, sole traders will have to sell their foodstuffs via the exchange too. An inter-departmental working group has been set up to settle urgent issues related to sales of foodstuffs. The group is headed by Mikhal Saveliev, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Foodstuffs. The Trade Ministry initiated the move to regulate butter and cheese exports. According to its experts, these measures will help organize exports under adequate prices which will be fixed during bids.