Gov. Spencer Cox has issued an executive order directing employees of State Liquor Stores to remove Russian-produced and Russian-branded spirits from their shelves.
SALT LAKE CITY – In the midst of Russia’s four-day old invasion of the Ukraine, Utah has launched its own economic sanctions against the aggressor nation.
On Feb. 26, Gov. Spencer Cox issued an executive order directing employees of the Utah Department of Alcohol Beverage Control to remove all Russian-produced and Russian-branded products from the shelves of state liquor stores.
“Russia’s ruthless attack on a sovereign nation is an egregious violation of human rights,” Cox said while announcing the executive order.
“Utah stands in solidarity with Ukraine and will not support Russian enterprises, no matter how small the exchange,” the governor added.
The governors of Texas, Ohio and New Hampshire issued similar orders on Saturday, as did Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada.
Essentially, Cox’s order targets vodka as a largely symbolic way to protest the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Even if every state were to follow Cox’s lead, however, a nationwide ban of Russian spirits would only have a minimal economic impact on Russia and certainly not dry up supplies of vodka here.
According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, vodka was the only alcohol imported from Russia in 2021. But only 1.2 percent of the vodka sold in the U.S. last year originated in that country.
Although many brands of vodka have Russian-sounding names, that is a marketing ploy rather than an indication of their point of origin. Most of those spirits are distilled in Sweden, France, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Liquor associations are gearing up efforts to notify both retailers and consumers that the most popular brands of vodka sold in the U.S. are not Russian products. They include Absolut, Grey Goose, SKYY, Smirnoff and Tito’s.
In related news, some alcohol retailers in several states are joining the state boycotts on vodka. They include businesses in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Kansas, Michigan, Ohio, New York and Texas.
Here in Utah, Cox’s executive order requires the removal of Russian-made and Russian-branded products from DABC stores until the order is rescinded.
The order also orders the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity to review the state’s procurements for any other economic relationships with Russia.