U.S. chicken shippers feel Russia's squeeze

The Russian government announced Thursday it will ban poultry shipments from certain U.S. processors found to be out of compliance with its health and safety requirements.

The ban applies to 19 U.S. poultry meat processors. Another 29 processors received warning letters from the Russian government, CNN reported.

Russia's health and agricultural ministries had randomly tested the poultry products and found them to be full of antibiotics and arsenic, CNN said.

Russian officials insisted that imposing the ban was not in retaliation for the U.S. government's humanitarian support to Georgia in the aftermath of recent military action between Russia and the Black Sea country.

Russia is the largest export market for U.S. broiler quarters, totaling more than 640,000 tons in 2007. However, Russia has started to ramp up its own domestic poultry production.

We recognize that Russia has been dramatically increasing its poultry production over the last several years and is growing more independent, said Jim Sumner, president of the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, in an interview Wednesday with Reuters.

The U.S. poultry industry is hopeful that it will weather the political storm brewing between the two countries. We're a very visible commodity whenever there are issues in the U.S.-Russia relationship, Sumner told Reuters. 

Source: Transportweekly