Russia says it will block German imports of meat and dairy products starting 27 June. This is coming on the heels of the European Union saying it had struck a deal to allow the resumption of EU vegetable shipments into Russia, which have been blocked since earlier in June due to the e.coli scare with bean sprouts.
EU officials say they had an agreement with Moscow to allow the resumption of vegetable imports to Russia but the latter cast doubt on that assertion, saying key conditions still had to be fulfilled. Meanwhile, Russia’s new dairy and meat ban will affect 10 dairy and three meat producers that currently export to Russia.
The ban is being implemented because of E coli-type bacteria found in meats exported to Russia and in German meat processing plants, according to Sergei Dankvert, head of Russia’s agricultural inspection agency. The presence of the bacteria makes a meat product unsafe for consumption under Russian law, he says. ‘We have repeatedly tried to draw attention to (the presence of E coli in German meat and dairy products), but we have always been told, by the European Commission among others, that the presence of this bacteria is harmless and that Russian demands are without grounds.”
Failure by the EU to control the problem could lead to wider Russian bans on EU meat and dairy products, he warns.