990501 Russia Suspends Thorn Apple Valley Imports

Moscow - Russia last week suspended imports of meat products made by U.S. company Thorn Apple Valley Inc until U.S. authorities say they are fit for human consumption, a senior agriculture ministry official said.

“We have asked them (the U.S.) to suspend imports until they decide themselves about the quality of these products,” Stanislav Zakharov, deputy head of the ministry's veterinary department, said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on April 13 that 12 million pounds (around 5,400 tonnes) of potentially tainted meat processed by a Thorn Apple Valley factory last year had been exported to Russia and South Korea.

Thorn Apple Valley said that its reputation had been badly damaged, as the USDA statement had been poorly worded and caused panic among customers who began returning products processed by the company's other factories.

The USDA later issued another statement confirming that only produce from one plant was affected.

“We had nothing definite (from the USDA), just 'maybes', but we decided to close our market to these products and let the USDA clarify the situation,” Zakharov said.

“If they give us the necessary guarantees, we will examine them and will restart imports,” Zakharov added.

He declined to say how much Thorn Apple Valley produce had already been imported to Russia, but Russian veterinary data showed that all but 60 tonnes of the meat had been traced and eliminated.

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