Russian watchdog to declare incapacity of vet services in three German states
MOSCOW. March 21 (Interfax) - Russia's food watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor plans to declare the incapacity of veterinary services in three German states, which will lead to a sharp decline in the number of meat and dairy suppliers from the states.
"We will ask the European Commission to organize talks with veterinary services in Germany because we consider it necessary to declare the incapacity of veterinary services in three federal states," Rosselkhoznadzor Chairman Sergei Dankvert told Interfax.
As reported earlier, Russia is most concerned with veterinary services in North Rhine Westphalia, Lower Saxony and Bavaria.
"Inspections carried out by our specialists in Germany showed that the capabilities of the veterinary services in the three states is under question as the guarantees provided by them are invalid and do not ensure the safety of products going to Russia," Dankvert said.
Rosselkhoznadzor is forced to raise the issue of a 50% cut in the list of companies that supply to Russia and are guaranteed by the veterinary services in the three states and is willing to hold consultations on this issue, he said.
"As practice shows, despite our repeated requests, the EU veterinary service does not take any corrective actions so we have no other way to protect ourselves from dangerous diseases than to impose import restrictions on companies from the three states," Dankvert said.
Only companies verified by Russian veterinary specialists and meeting Russian standards can remain on the suppliers list as well as those that have special programs for importing their products to Russia, he said.
Talks on the problem may be held after April 10, he added. "The efforts of our specialists are currently focused on measures to strengthen the epizootic situation inside the country," he said.
Most worrying for Rosselkhoznadzor is the spread in Germany of a new virus that has been named Schmallenberg. International sources indicate that it has already been found in over 900 German farms. The virus has also been found in 670 French farms and 158 British farms.