February 16, 2006

Russia maintains ban on Ukrainian meat, dairy imports

The ban on the import of Ukrainian meat and dairy products to Russia, imposed Jan 20, will remain for some time despite ongoing intense negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian veterinary officials in Moscow, a statement issued Wednesday Feb 15 by the Russian veterinary watchdog, Rosselkhoznadzor, said.

The statement said, quoting Rosselkhoznadzor's head Sergey Dankvert: "Any concrete agreements to lift the ban are out of the question at this time. First we must establish how effective the Ukrainian veterinary service is. Then we'll draw up a list of Ukrainian meat and dairy producers, who export their products to Russia, and carry out inspections to see if they meet European standards."

The general director of Ukraine's meat producers' association, Viktor Pismak, said Ukraine's meat exports to Russia in 2005 were worth US$170 million and losses from Russian ban would amount to US$12 million to US$15 million a month.

According to chairman of Ukrainian union of dairy enterprises Vadim Chagarovsky, Ukraine exported in 2005 dairy products worth US$650 million, with 60 percent of total exports going to Russia. He said the Ukrainian dairy industry's loses would amount to US$50 million to US$60 million a month if the Russian ban continued.