EN 
LV Almost half of the necessary signatures for VAT reduction on fresh food collected
The initiative launched by “Maxima Latvija” and partner organizations for a reduced VAT rate for fresh food products (meat, fish, eggs, dairy products), as well as maintaining the existing 5 % rate for fruits, vegetables and berries, has caused a wide resonance in society – almost 5,000 or almost half of the signatures have already been collected to submit this initiative to the Saeima. In order to reach an even wider audience, in addition to collecting signatures on the internet platform www.manabalss.lv, a signature collection was organized at the “Maxima XXX” store in the shopping mall “Akropole”. Within a couple of hours, more than 400 Latvian residents have expressed their support for the VAT reduction.
“At a time when almost 831% of Latvian residents have admitted that their food expenses have increased, it is especially important for us to provide support to customers by ensuring low prices for a wide range of goods. When conducting the first signature collection at the Maxima XXX store in the Akropole shopping mall, we observed great public interest and a desire to change the current tax practice. After collecting signatures in the store environment, it is clear that the VAT reduction is of concern to all members of society – both younger people and seniors – everyone is ready to get involved in order to reduce the amount of spending on food products and promote their well-being, so we call on the public to join forces to collect the remaining half of the signatures,” comments Jānis Vanags, Corporate Manager of Maxima Latvija
As previously mentioned Rector of the Latvian University of Agriculture, Professor Irina Pilvere: “The reduced VAT rate for food products has been in effect in most European countries for many years, but it is not applied in only 4 EU member states – Lithuania, Estonia, Bulgaria and Denmark. Already, the reduction in the VAT rate for fruits and vegetables typical of Latvia has contributed to the fact that Latvia has the lowest prices in these product groups compared to the other Baltic states. Reducing VAT is a natural step to improve the well-being of the population, because, judging by the research data, Latvia has one of the lowest levels of social protection in percentage terms, calculated from GDP in the amount of only 15%, while in EU member states it is on average 27%. Reducing VAT would not only promote the well-being of the population and the convenience of purchasing various fresh food products, but would also encourage the consumption of healthy, diverse and high-quality food, promote employment in rural areas, and create opportunities for the development of local production companies.”
Currently, every resident of Latvia can sign an initiative electronically on the public initiative platform. www.manabalss.lv. In turn, further stores for collecting signatures will be announced. https://www.maxima.lv/mediju-telpaUpon reaching the threshold of 10,000 signatures, the collected signatures will be used to advance the initiative and consider it in the Saeima.
It has already been reported that the initiative to reduce VAT on food products is being led by the retail chain "Maxima Latvija" in cooperation with leading agricultural organizations - the association "Cooperation Council of Agricultural Organizations" (LOSP) and the association "Farmers' Council" (ZSA). It is expected that a large number of new organizations and civil society representatives will join the initiative, taking into account the relevance of the topic in a period of declining economy and declining purchasing power.
Information for the media:
Liene Dupate-Ugule
Communications Manager, SIA “Maxima Latvija”
Phone: 26425420
email: liene.dupate@maxima.lv