EEC grants Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan benefit on imports of cocoa powder in 2026

MOSCOW. May 20 (Interfax) - The Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) has granted a tariff benefit in the form of exemption from customs duties on imports of cocoa powder (HS EAEU code 1805 00 000 0) for Armenia, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan.

As reported by the commission's trade bloc, the benefit will come into force ten days after the publication of the decision and will be valid in 2026.

Under the benefit, Belarus will be able to import 1,500 tonnes of cocoa powder duty-free for industrial processing, while Armenia and Kyrgyzstan will be able to import 300 tonnes each.

"The customs tariff regulation measure is intended to increase the supply of cocoa powder to the domestic market of a number of our countries for the production of finished goods," EEC Trade Minister Andrei Slepnev was quoted as saying. Cocoa powder is used for the production of chocolate and chocolate products, confectionery, bakery and flour products, dairy products with cocoa-containing components, as well as beverages and dry mixes, he said.