‘All the recent bans on meat import are largely meant to protect Russian consumers from low-quality produce and have nothing to do with politics or economic pressure,’ Head of Sverdlovsk Region Meat Union Sergey Emelyanov said to UrBC. Most of the bans were brought about by salmonella found in the meat shipments, so, according to Mr. Emelyanov, as soon as the foreign companies get rid of the problem, they will be able to supply their meat to Russia again.

‘The main challenge, though, is that Russia had to assume certain responsibilities related to providing foreign food producers with access to home market because of the upcoming WTO membership. The country will have to comply with these regulations for the next four years; in my opinion, ensuring our farmers get the same kind of subsidies as their foreign counterparts and making Russian market home produce-oriented would be the best option of all,’ he observed.