Beef ban threat ‘sabre rattling’
New Zealand authorities are mystified by a report that Russia plans to temporarily ban imports of beef and beef products from New Zealand from February 6.
An industry source described the move as ‘‘sabre rattling’’ and probably a non-tariff barrier to frustrate trade.
Russia’s agriculture safety watchdog claimed to have found the feed additive ractopamine in some samples, it said in a statement on Thursday.
A spokesman for New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) said the ministry did not receive prior notification and officials were seeking clarification about the announcement.
He said one of the contaminants Russia identified in beef meat, ractopamine, is not registered in New Zealand for use in cattle.
‘‘New Zealand food standards are among the highest in the world and we are committed to producing high quality safe meat for domestic and overseas consumers,’’ the spokesman said.
The watchdog, Rosselkhoznadzor, said it was also considering banning fish imports from New Zealand due to traces of mercury in some supplies.
Meat Industry Association chief executive Tim Ritchie said the additive, which is used to promote leanness and muscle growth, was prohibited in beef or sheep feed in New Zealand, but was allowed in pork. ‘‘As far as I’m aware there has been no formal communication through the normal regulatory channels,’’ Ritchie said.
He said MPI ran a residues programme and the last report he had seen showed no ractopamine had been picked up.
New Zealand’s red meat trade to Russia was worth $24.6 million in 2016. The largest share of that was beef livers, which earned $9.5m.
In 2014 New Zealand came close to signing a free trade agreement with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan before the Crimean and Ukraine crises put negotiations on hold.
New Zealand is not covered by a wider ban on most Western food imports which Moscow introduced in 2014 in retaliation for Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its role in the Ukraine crisis.
However, then prime minister John Key said in 2015 New Zealand should ‘‘show solidarity’’ with the European Union and other Western countries that had applied sanctions on Russia, while NZ First leader Winston Peters said New Zealand should be ‘‘pragmatic and prosperous’’ rather than ‘‘principled and poor’’.
MPI is investigating the latest contamination issue.
Russia has banned meat supplies from other countries in previous years, due to traces of ractopamine which is banned in several countries, including Russia and China.