June 26, 2014

Russia's Rosselkhoznadzor seeks to discuss with Brazil's veterinary service over the quality of pork supplied to the country, a report by the agricultural watchdog states.

Rosselkhoznadzor is concerned about lab test results showing ractopamine, a drug used in food animals for growth promotion, in batches from some Brazilian enterprises. The growth hormone, which is banned in Russia, was found in pork and poultry. Seeking a return to the Russian market, Brazil earlier gave guarantees that it was not using ractopamine in production designed for the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.

Rosselkhoznadzor has offered emergency negotiations to the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture's Plant and Animal Health Protection Secretariat in the format of a tele-or videoconference on June 26.

Brazil resumed pork supplies to Russia on March 2014, supplying 36,600 tonnes worth US$136.5 million between March and May, according to the Federal Customs Service. Russia banned pork imports from Brazil in 2011 after ractopamine had been found in meat. The lifting of restrictions was seen as a compensation for undelivered pork from the EU amid an outbreak of African swine fever.