Russia Bans Imports From 19 US Poultry Producers

On the grounds of health and safety, Russia has imposed a ban on imports from 19 US poultry producers.

Reuters quoted Russia’s animal and plant health watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor as saying: “Joint Russian-US inspections of US poultry processing plants at the end of July and the beginning of August showed a number of inspected plants do not fully observe the agreed standards. The inspection showed that many plants have not taken steps to eliminate faults discovered by previous inspections.”

An additional 29 suppliers are also likely to face a ban on the same grounds, said Reuters. Tyson Foods, Sanderson Farms, Hormel Foods and Butterball are among the companies who have been banned in Russia.

Regarding Russia’s appetite for US poultry imports, The Associated Press quoted Mike Cockrell, CFO of Sanderson Farms, as saying: “They’re not as big as they used to be. But they’re still the most significant and if they quit buying, that would certainly dull that bright spot.”

This ban is understood to be part of Russia’s efforts to help domestic suppliers by cutting meat imports. According to Mr Cockrell, “chicken is still being used as a political tool,” said The Associated Press.