Yekaterinburg Municipal Duma Economic Development Committee members have recently been updated on how successfully the local strategic project on quality foods production was implemented in 2007, Duma’s press officer reports. It was announced that Yekaterinburg’s 16 large food manufacturers and 70 small companies produced a total of over 17 billion RUR worth of foods in 2007, which exceeds the figures for a year earlier by 7.5%.

At the same time, a number of manufacturers (the city’s flour milling and bakery plants, Confectionery Group SladCo, and Yekaterinburg Meatpacking Plant) experienced a production downfall, while others had problems related to foods’ quality and the companies’ uneasy cooperation with some chain stores. The huge amount of adulterated foods (some experts quote figures like 60% to 70% in the total volume offered for sale) is another problem; measures are being taken to get rid of the problem, but tangible results haven’t been reached yet.