Russia’s agricultural watchdog, Rosselkhoznadzor, has banned the import and transit through Russian territory of all meat products manufactured by the Belarusian company Veles-Mit LLC. The agency also requested that the Veterinary and Food Supervision Department of Belarus’ Agriculture and Food Ministry suspend the veterinary certification of products made by Veles-Mit for exports to Russia and other Eurasian Economic Union member states.
The decision followed the discovery of two shipments of pork back fat weighing a total of 43.6 tonnes that were destined for a Kazakh company and accompanied by a forged veterinary certificate.
Rosselkhoznadzor said it had doubts about the accuracy of information regarding the origin of the raw materials, which it believes may have come from Denmark. The agency also raised concerns about the quality of the products. Samples were found to contain residues of veterinary drugs, including antibiotics, as well as microbiological non-compliance involving Listeria and coliform bacteria.
