NZ goods still on sale in Russia

With summer approaching in the Russian capital, Muscovites can find a surprising number of Kiwisupplied picnic staples still on supermarket shelves.

Azbuka Vkusa, a supermarket chain in the country, still stocks products including Westpac brand frozen half shell mussels, Cloudy Bay pinot noir, goat milk infant formula and some Sistema plastic containers to pack them in.

The New Zealand Government joined much of the international community in restricting trade with the pariah nation in retaliation for Russia’s illegal invasion and occupation of Ukraine. Luxury goods such as wine and some shellfish are banned from export, all Russian goods have been slapped with a 35% tariff and some goods from the country, such as fuels and metals, have been banned outright.

Yet a range of Kiwi goods remain on sale in Russia, with much stock from pre-invasion exports and some exempt from restrictions. At Lenta, one of Russia’s largest grocery retailers, a bottle of 2017 Ned Marlborough sauvignon blanc retails for 899 rubles, equivalent to roughly NZ$20. Russian online wine merchant Winestyle retails a bottle of 2022 Takā sauvignon blanc for the discounted price of 1397 rubles (NZ$30).

A spokesperson for Spring Creek Vintners, which oversees the production of Takā wine, said the last export of wine to Russia shipped on September 23, 2022. This export is not in violation of the luxury goods export restrictions which came into effect on November 4.

This is the case for Cloudy Bay too, which is owned by French multinational LVMH.

As in the case of Cloudy Bay, most of the goods appear to have been exported some time ago. With the exception of infant goat milk formula which appears on the Stats NZ compiled lists of exported products in December and January. Mussels have been banned for export since November. But asked when the last export of mussels was, Westpac mussels, whose frozen product is available in Russian supermarket chain Azbuka Vkusa, declined to comment. Sistema have also been approached for comment.