Manufacturers of Sausages Should Come from «Shadows»

According to preliminary data of the State Statistics Committee, in 2014 Azerbaijan produced 1 823.6 tons of sausages, which is 2.6% more than in the previous year. Analysis of retail sales, imports of raw materials and auxiliary materials for the production shows that real output was much more.

Official statistics make adjustments in terms of production of sausage and sausage products. For example, in 2013, preliminary data on the volume of local production amounted to about 1,800 tons. The same report on industrial production announced the production of 6,000 tons of meat production - by 2 000 tons more than in 2012.

According to the research of family farms by the State Statistics Committee, per capita 0.6 kg of sausage and 0.9 kg of sausages are produced every year. This calculation shows that annual consumption of these products is not less than 14 200 tons. Last year, 1,394.5 tons of sausage passed through customs. Thus, manufacturers hid over 6,000 tons from taxation.

Circumstantial evidence of evading tax by sausage companies are data on imports of pork fat and artificial skin, necessary for the manufacture of sausages. In 2014, Azerbaijan imported pork fat from Denmark (279.8 tons), Canada (84 tons), Germany (42 tons), France (119 tons), Spain (504.3 tons), and others – in total, 1,029 tons of pork fat. This is 6.3 times more than in 2013 (163 tons). The chairman of the public association Producers of Meat and Meat Products, Fuad Gulubekov told Turan that these products are partly sold through retail. The rest is used by sausage shops, he said.

In addition, 120.3 tons of artificial skin for making sausages was imported in 2014, which was 1.3 tons more than in 2013.

It should be noted that in 2013 the Baku enterprises produced 735 tons of sausage. The production decreased by 110 tons. Over the past four years (2010-2013) manufacturers of sausages in Baku cut the production by 26%. Absheron sausage makers cut production by 5% and put on sale 565.4 tons. It is noteworthy that in 2013 the share of Nakhchivan was 22% of the production of sausages.

None of the producers of meat products provides information on the annual production capacity.

Major producers of sausage and frankfurters are Zahmat-Ruzi, Sahliyali, Orkhan-SS, Hakan Foods, Flagman, Halal Dad and others.

Last year, several companies received a certificate confirming compliance of their products with the national standards Halal.

Sausage to Azerbaijan also comes from Russia (555.2 tons), Turkey (379.3 tons), Germany (250.9 tons), the United States (100.2 tons), and other countries. The importers have paid foreign producers $ 4 million. ------- 08B