Senators Urge U.S. Trade Representative to Resolve Russian Meat Import Ban
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich), who chairs the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, has joined ranking committee member Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and 31 other senators in asking U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk “to quickly address Russia’s new import ban on U.S. beef, poultry and turkey.” According to a February 19, 2013, news release, the ban stems “from Russia’s zero tolerance policy regarding ractopamine, a feed additive for livestock approved by both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Codex Alimentarius Commission [CODEX].”
In their letter to the trade representative, the senators claim that this
“egregious” trade barrier would cost the U.S. economy $600 million annually
and amount to an import ban in violation of the World Trade Organization’s
(WTO’s) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement.
“The United States must do everything it can to defend its rights in both the
WTO and CODEX and prevent non-science-based trading practices from
other trading partners, including Russia,” conclude the senators. “[W]e must
demonstrate to Russia that its newfound commitment to WTO membership
includes adherence to science-based standards, such as the CODEX MRL for
ractopamine.” Additional details about the ban appear in Issues 465 and 466
of this Update.
