September 26, 2011

Russia cautious in lifting ban on Lithuania's pigs

Russia is slow in following the EU Commission's directive on lifting the ban on exports of Lithuanian pigs.

Due to an outbreak of swine fever, which the authorities managed to successfully eliminate, exports of pigs from Lithuania to Russia have been suspended since June.

Vidmantas Paulauskas, the deputy director of the Lithuanian State Food and Veterinary Service, told BNS that they have not received any formal document as yet but have spoken with agricultural attaché in Moscow on Friday, Sep 23 and has no news about possible authorization.

Russia accounts for 82% of total exports of food from Lithuania.

In 2010 Lithuania's exports of live pigs to Russia plummeted by 1.8 times, on-year, to 282,000 heads. So far this year the exports totalled 105,000 heads.

Exports of pigs to the EU and Russia were halted in June-August. The media reports that the ban on exports to Russia cost the growers some 4-5 million litas (US$156-194 million) in lost revenues per month.