US to Resume Chicken Exports to Russia

A recent agreement between the United States and Russia will allow U.S. poultry producers to resume exports to Russia.

Russia has been the largest market for U.S. poultry, importing US$767 million worth of birds in 2009, roughly five percent of U.S. production. However, trade was effectively suspended on Jan. 1 when Russia banned imports that had been processed with chlorinated rinses.

Under the new agreement, the United States will publish information on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Web site about which disinfectants and pathogen reduction treatments are approved by Russia for use in processing poultry and on food generally.

The United States will provide information to Russia on the solutions companies use on poultry shipped to Russia and will give Russia an updated list of poultry processing plants authorized to ship poultry to that country.

Poultry shipments will resume when Russia has conducted audits of U.S. chicken-processing plants, poultry industry officials said.