Rosselkhoznadzor, the Russian federal service for veterinary and phytosanitary surveillance, has lifted its ban on turkey imported from the United States. The ban had been in place for the past 12 months because of concerns over the use of growth promoter ractopamine in U.S. turkey products.
Sergey Dankvert, head of Rosselkhoznadzor, and USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Administrator Alfred Almanza had earlier in 2014 discussed the U.S. ractopamine-free program. At the time, Rosselkhoznadzor agreed to review the program, and if satisfied with the program, the import of U.S. turkey meat to Russia and the Customs Union (CU) would resume.
With the lifting of the ban, effective February 24, U.S. turkey processors Jennie-O Turkey Store and Butterball are able to resume exports to Russia and the CU, according to reports. The materials of a third turkey company, which had not previously exported to the CU, have been sent to the Customs Union for approval.
