Russia has found a way to circumvent the effects of Western sanctions on many non-military sectors of its economy, but one product that has skyrocketed in price is really suffering from countermeasures against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It’s a chewing gum whose price has skyrocketed due to production costs over the past year.

A modest pack of chewing gum cost 32 rubles (36 euro cents) in Russia in March 2022, but in March its price soared by an average of 22.3% to 39 rubles, according to Rosstat.

Price bubble?

Thus, chewing gum tops the list of goods that have risen most in price in Russian stores during the year of sanctions, according to the Russian financial channel RBC.

In its report, the Russian network explains that a large increase in prices began after the introduction of Western sanctions, which led to the cessation of imports and the massive suspension of foreign companies in Russia.

The rate of growth in prices for chewing gum over the past year was a record for the entire previous decade. In previous years, chewing gum was also sold in Russia, but the annual increase in prices was only one to three rubles a year.

Where “they stuck» chewing gum

Russian factories are trying to create a production infrastructure for chewing gum, which, according to RBC, was imported to Russia by sea from Spain before the imposition of sanctions.

Now domestic producers have switched to supplies from Brazil and Egypt, and are also making deals with China. However, suppliers raised prices by 40% due to higher supply chain costs and longer travel times.

Source: TASS, RBC