Russia is starting to implement food vouchers.

The Governor of the Kaliningrad region of Russia has announced plans to introduce food vouchers in the area starting in 2025. This initiative has sparked discussions at the federal level, and the State Duma has suggested considering its implementation across all of Russia.

According to The Moscow Times, Anatoly Aksakov, the chairman of the State Duma's committee on the financial market, described the governor's proposal as reasonable. He stated that food vouchers would help low-income Russians feel secure about having access to a minimum set of food and essential goods.

In the initial phase, the vouchers in the Kaliningrad region will be provided to pensioners with incomes below the subsistence level. There are also plans to include large families and other socially vulnerable groups in this initiative.

Similar proposals for introducing food stamps have been discussed and tested in various Russian regions before, but large-scale implementation has not occurred.