When will the food card program be launched in Russia? When will food cards for the poor be introduced in Russia Food cards in a year to whom
Grocery cards for the poor will come into use in 2018 – you can be 99% sure of this. The idea of their distribution was proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade for implementation back in the year, but now the head of the ministry D. Manturov speaks of the appearance of food cards as a fait accompli. The government was prompted to introduce such a social program for low-income citizens by the unfavorable economic situation in the country.
Who is eligible to claim the benefit?
The statistics collected by the Ministry of Social Protection in 2018 are terrifying: 22 million people (!) are below the poverty line in Russia, out of a total population of 147 million people! At the same time, the Ministry of Social Protection clarifies that it counted only those people who submitted the appropriate documents, recognizing themselves as low-income - in fact, the figure may turn out to be much more impressive. 15% of the Russian population (every seventh) count the coins in their wallet, trying to scrape together enough for a loaf of bread.
It is for low-income citizens that Russia is introducing food cards. Those who will be able to receive a food card include people with a monthly income not exceeding the subsistence level. The cost of living varies depending on the region - for example, in Moscow its size is 15,307 rubles.
Important clarification: The Ministry of Industry and Trade is going to issue food cards only to those citizens who find themselves below the poverty line due to external circumstances and can prove it. The state will definitely not support parasites who are able to work but do not want to. Russians who hide their real income and only pretend to be poor - freelancers, entrepreneurs, owners of subsidiary plots - should also not count on help.
How can a citizen understand whether he can take part in the food card program? To do this, he needs to make some simple calculations.
Add up all the income his family received over the last 3 months. Benefits, subsidies, scholarships also need to be taken into account.
Divide the resulting amount by 3 to derive the arithmetic mean.
Divide the result by the number of family members (including children and pensioners).
If the final value is below the subsistence level, you can safely apply for a food card for the poor in 2018.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade has not yet specified what documents are needed to obtain a food card. It is known that control over the distribution of cards will be the responsibility of social security authorities - a low-income citizen should not have a question about where to get a food card, because he is probably familiar with the address of the local social security department. To apply for benefits, you will not only have to bring the required papers, but also undergo an interview - a kind of lice test. Anyone who receives a food card in Russia will be required to make every effort to find a job (if there is none) in order to avoid the spread of parasitism.
It is expected that the list of citizens entitled to benefits will be reviewed every 6 months. A low-income citizen will have to bring documents confirming his preferential status to social security every six months.
What can you buy?
The holder of a food card, alas, will not be able to purchase with its help any products that catch his eye - he will only have access to those things without which a Russian’s daily diet is impossible to imagine. The Ministry of Industry and Trade promises to present an exact list of available products very soon - it is now known for certain that it will include:
Salt, sugar, spices.
Vegetables, fruits, dried fruits.
In addition, social products include pet food, hygiene products (soap, washing powder, etc.), seeds and seedlings.
The benefit will not apply to alcohol and cigarettes. The Ministry of Industry and Trade categorically states that it is not going to support the bad habits of Russians.
Card holders will also not be able to spend preferential funds on surplus products - say, candy. A low-income citizen who wants to please his child with sweets will have to spend his own money on it. The most controversial position so far is medicines - the Ministry of Industry and Trade has not decided whether they should be included in the list of social products.
Those Russians who will be issued food cards should pay attention to one more limitation: only Russian products will be able to be paid for with preferential funds. Due to this restriction, the Ministry of Industry and Trade will try to catch up with the second hare - namely, to support domestic producers and give them an advantage in competition with importers.
Point payment system - what is it?
Food certificates will be issued in the Mir payment system. The state will not transfer rubles to the cards at all, but bonus points - monthly in an amount equivalent to 1,200 or 1,400 rubles. The holder of a food certificate will have to put up with a number of restrictions.
Points cannot be accumulated. If a low-income citizen does not spend all the bonus rubles by the end of the month, the rest of the amount will be burned.
Points cannot be cashed out. You can pay with bonus rubles only in stores participating in the state program. It is expected that from 2018 the cards will be accepted in some canteens and cafes.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade clarifies that cardholders will be able to deposit personal funds into bonus accounts. Why should low-income citizens top up food cards with their own money? If only for the following reason: the state promises that a citizen will be able to receive from 30% to 50% of the top-up amount monthly - this is a pretty solid profit. The Ministry of Industry and Trade, apparently, has not yet decided what will happen to personal funds at the end of the month and whether they will burn out along with the bonus rubles.
Experience of the USSR and foreign countries
Distributing cards to the poor is not at all an innovative solution for a crisis economy. We can say that food cards are returning to Russia - a similar system was already in effect in the USSR.
Grocery cards in the USSR appeared along with the USSR itself - in 1917. The coupon payment system was introduced periodically, but this was not at all connected with the widespread poverty of Russians (as it is now), but with constant supply crises. Many of the products in the Soviet Union were considered scarce - they could only be obtained with a special coupon and only in limited quantities (to avoid speculation). The coupon system in the USSR reached its peak in the period 1988 - 1991, when citizens could not purchase either sugar or sunflower oil. Since 1992, food certificates began to disappear due to the spread of free trade.
But the coupon system is by no means a relic of the past. Nowadays, the practice of providing food certificates to low-income citizens is used all over the world, including in developed countries.
In the United States, low-income citizens have been paying for food stamps for 50 years, receiving about $115 per person each month. Americans consider this system fair and are not going to abandon it.
In Great Britain, the coupon system was introduced after the Second World War due to food shortages. The program was resumed in 2014.
In Cuba, food cards have been issued to the poor for over 50 years, but now the coupon system on Liberty Island is on its last legs. It is interesting that cigarettes were excluded from the list of preferential goods in Cuba only in 2018.
Food certificates were also introduced in modern Russia – at the regional level. For example, in 2013, 3 thousand food cards were issued for large families in the Kirov region.
Both market experts and ordinary citizens for the most part have a positive attitude towards the idea of reviving the system of food cards in Russia for pensioners and other citizens in need of financial support. This was confirmed by a survey organized by VTsIOM: almost 80% of respondents were in favor. But if the idea of introducing an analogue of the coupon system into the economy is so good, no matter how you look at it, why is the Ministry of Industry and Trade delaying its implementation? The answer to this question is simple: the state cannot yet find enough money to bring the idea to life. According to preliminary estimates, almost 70 billion rubles will be needed - finding such an amount in a country with a crisis economy, alas, is extremely problematic.
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There are no plans to introduce food cards for the poor in 2019, despite repeated proposals to stimulate consumer demand with food stamps and support the poor. This was announced by Arkady Ponomarev, a member of the Duma Committee on Agrarian Issues, at Agroholdings of Russia-2018.
Who is eligible to claim the benefit?
The launch of the food subsidy program was planned first in 2018 and then in 2019. Several years ago, the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposed creating a supplementary nutrition system in Russia for the low-income population. It was proposed that special bank cards of citizens of this category be credited with funds that could be spent on certain domestic products - fresh, perishable. According to Ponomarev, the implementation of this proposal will stimulate domestic demand and the development of processing industries.
An important clarification: the Ministry of Industry and Trade was going to issue food cards only to those citizens who found themselves below the poverty line due to external circumstances and could prove it. The state will definitely not support parasites who are able to work but do not want to. Russians who hide their real income and only pretend to be poor - freelancers, entrepreneurs, owners of subsidiary plots - should also not count on help.
If the program is launched in 2020, how can a citizen understand whether he can take part in the food card program? To do this, he needs to make some simple calculations.
Add up all the income his family received over the last 3 months. Benefits, subsidies, scholarships also need to be taken into account.
Divide the resulting amount by 3 to derive the arithmetic mean.
Divide the result by the number of family members (including children and pensioners).
If the final value is below the subsistence level, you can safely apply for a food card for the poor in 2020 (provided that the program is launched).
The Ministry of Industry and Trade does not specify what documents are needed to obtain a food card. It is known that control over the distribution of cards will be the responsibility of social security authorities - a low-income citizen should not have a question about where to get a food card, because he is probably familiar with the address of the local social security department. To apply for a benefit, you will not only have to bring the required papers, but also undergo an interview - a kind of “lice test.” Anyone who receives a food card in Russia will be required to make every effort to find a job (if there is none) in order to avoid the spread of parasitism.
It is expected that the list of citizens entitled to benefits will be reviewed every 6 months. A low-income citizen will have to bring documents confirming his preferential status to social security every six months.
What can you buy?
The holder of a food card, alas, will not be able to purchase with its help any products that catch his eye - he will only have access to those things without which a Russian’s daily diet is impossible to imagine. The Ministry of Industry and Trade will provide an exact list of available products at the launch of the program. The list will include:
Meat and fish.
Eggs and milk.
Salt, sugar, spices.
Vegetables, fruits, dried fruits.
In addition, “social products” include pet food, hygiene products (soap, washing powder, etc.), seeds and seedlings.
The benefit will not apply to alcohol and cigarettes. The Ministry of Industry and Trade categorically states that it is not going to support the bad habits of Russians.
Card holders will also not be able to spend preferential funds on surplus products - say, candy. A low-income citizen who wants to please his child with sweets will have to spend his own money on it. The most controversial position so far is medicines - the Ministry of Industry and Trade has not decided whether to include them in the list of “social products”.
Those Russians who will be issued food cards should pay attention to one more limitation: only Russian products will be able to be paid for with preferential funds. Due to this restriction, the Ministry of Industry and Trade will try to “catch up with the second hare” - namely, to support domestic producers and give them an advantage in competition with importers.
Point payment system - what is it?
Food certificates will be issued in the Mir payment system. The state will not transfer rubles to the cards at all, but bonus points - monthly in an amount equivalent to 1,200 or 1,400 rubles. The holder of a food certificate will have to put up with a number of restrictions.
Points cannot be accumulated. If a low-income citizen does not spend all the bonus rubles by the end of the month, the rest of the amount will be burned.
Points cannot be cashed out. You can pay with bonus rubles only in stores participating in the state program. It is expected that from 2019 the cards will be accepted in some canteens and cafes.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade clarifies that cardholders will be able to deposit personal funds into bonus accounts. Why should low-income citizens top up food cards with “their own hard-earned money”? If only for the following reason: the state promises that a citizen will be able to receive from 30% to 50% of the top-up amount monthly - this is a pretty solid profit. The Ministry of Industry and Trade, apparently, has not yet decided what will happen to personal funds at the end of the month and whether they will burn out along with the bonus rubles.
Experience of the USSR and foreign countries
The distribution of “cards for the poor” is not at all an innovative solution for a crisis economy. We can say that food cards are returning to Russia - a similar system was already in effect in the USSR.
Grocery cards in the USSR appeared along with the USSR itself - in 1917. The coupon payment system was introduced periodically, but this was not at all connected with the widespread poverty of Russians (as it is now), but with constant supply crises. Many of the products in the Soviet Union were considered scarce - they could only be obtained with a special coupon and only in limited quantities (to avoid speculation). The coupon system in the USSR reached its peak in the period 1988 - 1991, when citizens could not purchase either sugar or sunflower oil. Since 1992, food certificates began to disappear due to the spread of free trade.
But the coupon system is by no means a relic of the past. Nowadays, the practice of providing food certificates to low-income citizens is used all over the world, including in developed countries.
In the United States, low-income citizens have been paying for food stamps for 50 years, receiving about $115 per person each month. Americans consider this system fair and are not going to abandon it.
In Great Britain, the coupon system was introduced after the Second World War due to food shortages. The program was resumed in 2014.
In Cuba, food cards have been issued to the poor for over 50 years, but now the coupon system on Liberty Island is on its way out. It is interesting that cigarettes were excluded from the number of “preferential” goods in Cuba only in 2016.
Food certificates were also introduced in modern Russia – at the regional level. For example, in 2013, 3 thousand food cards were issued for large families in the Kirov region.
Both market experts and ordinary citizens for the most part have a positive attitude towards the idea of reviving the system of food cards in Russia for pensioners and other citizens in need of financial support. This was confirmed by a survey organized by VTsIOM: almost 80% of respondents were in favor. But if the idea of introducing an analogue of the coupon system into the economy is so good, no matter how you look at it, why is the Ministry of Industry and Trade delaying its implementation? The answer to this question is simple: the state cannot yet find enough money to bring the idea to life. According to preliminary estimates, almost 70 billion rubles will be needed - finding such an amount in a country with a crisis economy, alas, is extremely problematic.
Yesterday it became known about new support for low-income citizens of the country - introduction of preferential food cards in 2017. This innovation should not be confused and compared with food stamps that were issued during the Great Patriotic War and during the collapse of the USSR. Today we will look at who the cards will be issued to, how they work, and what the received bonuses can be spent on.
Food cards for the poor since 2017
The program for targeted support for low-income citizens is still in development, but the government promises to introduce it in 2017. Its meaning is as follows: low-income citizens who cannot afford to purchase fresh food products, such as chilled meat, fish products, vegetables and fruits, will receive certain bonus rubles. From reliable sources it became known that about 1,400 rubles.These bonus rubles will be credited to special cards issued for this purpose in the payment system "World". Another important point - You won't be able to earn points. Unspent points received in the past month will automatically expire!
Ministry of Industry and Trade, noted that bonus points cannot be cashed in or withdrawn; they can only be spent on products specified in the acceptable list. Considering that the amount of 1,400 rubles is not large, it will be possible to put personal funds on a food card. When they are credited to the card, the holder receives a bonus in the amount of 30 to 50% from the refilled amount. It is not yet known what will happen to bonuses credited as a result of topping up with personal funds at the end of the month.
It is noted that products can only be purchased in certain stores that are connected to a unified payment system, which has not yet been specified.
Bonus points can only be spent on domestic perishable products, which will also stimulate demand for local goods and increased turnover of domestic products. It will also be impossible to buy cigarettes, alcohol and other harmful products!
Who will be issued food cards?
Food cards will be issued only to those families who really need them. For calculation it is taken average total income all family members for 3 months, salaries, benefits, pensions, scholarships, etc., and then divided by the number of members of seven. If the amount received is less living wage (minimum wage), valid in the region at the time of calculation, the family receives a food card. Also, a mandatory condition for receiving a discount card is the registration of all family members in one place (house, apartment).Food cards in the USSR
The main difference between food cards issued in the USSR is that they were aimed at combating product shortages, and not at helping the poor. The current difficult economic situation in the country during the Soviet Union and the crisis of 2017 have nothing in common. In the USSR there were simply no goods and they could not be bought “legally”. The USSR coupon allowed one to purchase a scarce product in a certain quantity.Food cards in the USA
In the United States of America (USA), the card system has been successfully operating for more than 50 years. According to Americans, food cards are a familiar social support tool for America, to which they are very accustomed. In the USA, a food card is replenished on average by $115 per month if there is one person and by $255 for the whole family.According to the Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov, this year the country's authorities should “start” with a new program. Within its framework, targeted assistance will be provided to “certain categories of citizens who will be required to spend” the money allocated to them on food products. The head of the department announced this at a meeting of the United Russia faction in the State Duma. Currently, the program is undergoing final approvals from the Ministry of Finance, TASS reports.
ON THIS TOPIC
Earlier, the Ministry of Industry and Trade explained how the project developed by economists would be implemented in practice. It is expected that low-income Russians will be given special cards with points that can only be spent on food. At the same time, priority on the list will be those products that are lacking in the diet of this category of citizens - “fresh and healthy”, that is, different from cheap substitutes. It was assumed that such cards would be put into effect in 2016, but the program was postponed.
Also, starting from 2018, Russians in need will be provided with free meals in catering establishments - in particular, in canteens at various organizations. This program is designed to ensure sustainable demand for manufacturers. In addition, the introduction of cards will support import substitution - in this case, the state will pay for products based on stable demand, the Ministry of Industry and Trade noted.
According to the department, funds from “food” cards cannot be cashed out. It will not be possible to accumulate them either: with the end of the calendar month they will burn out, the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper clarifies.
It was reported that the Russian Ministry of Finance proposed to pay poverty benefits. As the site wrote, such an initiative was made by the deputy head of the department, Tatyana Nesterenko. According to her, it is necessary to implement a whole range of measures to support low-income Russians. In addition, the Ministry of Finance believes that the concept of “need” needs to be clearly established in Russian legislation.