Moscow may ease poultry import restrictions

Russia may temporarily ease import restrictions on U.S. poultry, provided that U.S. producers move toward meeting Russia’s new standards, according to First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov.
Earlier this year, Moscow implemented restrictions on the use of chlorine in poultry processing, effectively banning imports from the United States, where poultry is routinely cleaned with chlorinated water to reduce pathogenic bacteria.
Talks last month on resuming U.S. imports stalled, but Russia has invited the United States back for a second round of talks about poultry imports, Gennady Onishchenko, head of Russia’s Federal Consumer Protection Service, told Reuters. “Now the ball is in the court of American partners,” he said.