MOSCOW: Russia banned pork from Brazil at a time that imports from the Latin American country, the biggest foreign supplier of the meat, have been rising and as the Kremlin has sought to encourage its own farm industry.
The government barred Brazilian pork and beef imports from Dec. 1, saying testing had found the muscle growth stimulant ractopamine, which is prohibited in Russia. A Brazilian lobby for the industry said the feed additive isn’t used in production of the exported meat, which adheres to Russian rules.
Total imports of pork to Russia are rising for the first year in four and may reach 300,000 metric tons, according to Russia’s National Pig Farmers Union. Supplies from Brazil, which make up 90% of the shipments, are competing with local producers on price, the union said.
“Brazil was left alone as a major supplier,” Yury Kovalev, head of the union, said in Moscow. “They were reminded that we have certain requirements.”
Miratorg Agribusiness Holding and Ros Agro Plc are among Russian producers that stand to gain from import curbs. Miratorg’s President Viktor Linnik told the RBC newspaper last month that Brazil sells almost $1 billion of meat to Russia every year. As of Nov. 12, pork imports had risen about 13% from the same period a year earlier, the Agriculture Ministry said on its website, citing customs data.
