November 22, 2006

 

Russia threatens to ban EU meat 

 

 

Russia has threatened to ban all imports of EU animal products from 1 January, 2007 citing health and safety worries arising from swine fever in Bulgaria and Romania.

 

The news comes as EU negotiators have just began hopeful Russia would acquiesce to a lifting of the ban on Polish meat.

 

Russia is concerned that animal products from the two countries would be circulated  in the EU following enlargement, commission spokesman Philip Tod told EU Observer.

 

However, the EU has taken all transitional measures which it considers sufficient.

 

Russia's threat to ban EU meat comes at a time it just finished signing a WTO-agreement with the US to import more US meat. The two countries also agreed on the level of quotas and Russia was allowed to retain its right to impose quotas on meat imports from the US after 2009.

 

Russia also want the EU, from 2007 onwards, to certify on all their agricultural products sent to Russia that no potentially harmful pesticides or chemicals have been used in any stage of the production process, a move that might cost the EU millions. 

 

EU experts say Russia is using agricultural issues as a bargaining chip to maximise their position on energy market access issues.

 

Experts are urging the EU to be prepared as Russia is likely to carry out the ban on EU imports.

 

If so, Poland is most likely to benefit from the row as it would no longer be fighting a lone battle against Russia. EU would likely retaliate in kind should Russia decide to impose the ban, experts say.

 

Talks have not been going well, even as the EU has outwardly expressed its optimism the row would be resolved soon. EU negotiators have so far failed to get Russia to agree to trilateral Brussels-Warsaw-Moscow talks on the Polish ban.

 

Meanwhile, Russia is slowly opening up to meat products from Ukraine. It has permitted dairy exports for six Ukrainian enterprises and authorised beef exports from 2 Ukranian plants in November out of a total 19 inspected.

 

Russia placed a ban on Ukranian meat imports in January this year, with Ukranian losses estimated at US$ 50- 60 million a month.

 

Norway itself has had a harrowing escape from Russia's threat of a ban on its salmon. The country's agreement last month to issue forgery-proof export certificates for its salmon exports saved it from millions of losses should a Russian ban come just at the start of its harvesting season.