Russia approves import of dairy products to Customs Union

Russia approves import of dairy products to Customs Union

The decision was based on the guarantees of Serbian veterinary service and the results of expert analysis proving that the recently identified deficiencies were corrected, Russia's RIA Novosti reported over the weekend.

“Rosselkhoznadzor is ready to include two Serbian dairy enterprises in the Register of organizations and individuals involved in the production, processing and/or storage of goods transported to the territory of the Customs Union, after the issue is agreed by the veterinary services of the republics of Belarus and Kazakhstan,” Rosselkhoznadzor said in a statement.

Serbia is one of few European countries not affected by the Russian food import restrictions, which were introduced in response to the tightening of Western sanctions against Moscow.

According to Russia's Federal Customs Service, 1.15 million tons of dairy products, worth USD 4.2 billion, were imported to the country in 2013, mostly from Belarus, Ukraine and several other European countries including France and Finland.

On August 7, Russia imposed a ban on meat, sea food, fruit, vegetable and dairy imports from the US, EU, Norway, Canada and Australia, in response to the latest round of Western sanctions.