RF ban on US poultry import may harm bilateral relations-view.

WASHINGTON, January 10 (Itar-Tass) - The ban on the import to Russia
of poultry meat treated with chlorine that came into force on January 1 is
capable of negatively affecting Washington-Moscow relations, US Secretary
of Agriculture Tom Vilsack told journalists on Saturday during a technical
stopover in Shannon (Ireland) on the way to Afghanistan for a working
visit.

The US secretary of agriculture confirmed that his agency's delegation
would go to Moscow for negotiations on the above matter probably on
January 17, about which head of the Russian Federal Service for Consumer
Rights and Human Welfare Protection (Rospotrebnadzor), RF Chief Sanitary
Doctor Gennady Onishchenko said earlier.
Vilsack said that the US side hopes that they (Russian officials)
first of all understand which difficulties this (aforesaid rule) will
create for the sector in the United States and in Russia for consumers, as
well as the influence of the new norm on the bilateral relations in
general. According to him, the American side hopes that meaningful
discussions of the situation will be held in Moscow.
Vilsack also noted that as far as is known to the US authorities, many
Russian enterprises also use chlorine for the treatment of poultry meat.
According to Reuters, Vilsack said on Saturday he hoped for
"meaningful" talks with Moscow next week over a ban on US poultry, warning
relations would be harmed if the issue were not resolved. Vilsack said a
team of US technical experts was due in Russia around January 17 to
discuss this month's ban on US poultry imports because of Moscow's concern
over a commonly used chlorine treatment.
"Our hope is that they (Russia) first and foremost recognize the
difficulties that this is going to create for the industry in our country
and their country and their consumers, and hopefully understand the impact
this will have generally on our relationship," said Vilsack, without
giving details. "Our hope is that there are some meaningful discussions
there," he said of the Moscow talks.
Vilsack said US research indicated many Russian establishments also
used chlorine treatments on poultry and the new regulation was a problem
for them too, a view he made clear to Russia's agriculture minister,
Reuters reported. "We suggested that the proposed regulation was probably
not workable, not just from the US perspective but from their own
establishments," Vilsack said on a brief refuelling stop in Ireland en
route to Asia. In 2008, Russia bought $801 million worth of US chicken,
making it the United States' biggest export market.
Vilsack said there was agreement that chicken already in transit to
Russia would be allowed in under the old system, and said he hoped next
week's talks would result in a "better understanding of the system and the
risks that are inherent in the new framework that they are proposing."
Russia made the new law effective on January 1, prohibiting chlorine -- a
rinsing method used for more than 25 years - as an anti-microbial
treatment for poultry. The United States believes the new rule is
unjustified, saying scientific evidence shows it to be a safe and
effective disinfectant to kill pathogens that can cause food poisoning.
Trade tensions involving technical and health-related barriers have
flared regularly between the two nations since the United States began
shipping large volumes of chicken and pork to Russia more than a decade
ago. Washington has said Russia's concerns are unwarranted and that its
demands go far beyond international scientific standards used by members
of the World Trade Organisation. Russia does not belong to the WTO so is
not bound by its standards, and some experts say the problem over chicken
shows why the United States should help Russia complete the drawn-out
process of accession, according to Reuters. Blocking US meat imports helps
Russia boost demand and prices for domestic farmers, and many in the
United States believe protectionism is at the root of the barriers. Moscow
has also banned pork imports from all but six US processing plants because
of a dispute over standards for antibiotic residues. An aide to Vilsack
said the issue of pork products might also be raised during the talks next
week. In 2008, Russia bought $476 million of US pork, putting it in the
top five importers.
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