03.11.2010

Russia will ban the sale of frozen poultry starting Jan. 1, 2011, according to a report by RIA Novosti quoting Gennady Onishchenko, head of the country’s Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare.

"The transition to chilled poultry was approved in March 2008. There will be no turnover of frozen poultry in Russia from January 1, 2011. It is an outdated and rough technology, which leads to a loss of many of the useful qualities of meat," Onishchenko told RIA Novosti.

"Everybody knew about it. This is not a new idea. This information was published long ago. All documents are registered in the Justice Ministry. This question was discussed with our producers, scientists, with Russian Academies of Medical and Agricultural Sciences. It is a corporate decision made on the basis of analysis. I have received loads of letters from governors who thank us and say that Russian producers can guarantee chilled poultry deliveries to consumers without deep freezing. "

He also said there are technologies of poultry chilling in inert gas, which permits storage of poultry for up to 120 days.

"You are welcome to import poultry, but only chilled, not frozen," he said, when asked about U.S. chicken imports.

 Sergei Yushin, head of an executive committee at Russia’s National Meat Association, disagreed with the decision. “Such a prohibition exists nowhere in the world,” he was quoted as saying.

"There is no scientific basis or food safety rationale for this ban. Freezing is a long used, internationally accepted method of securing the safety of food products, including poultry and poultry products," the USDA spokeswoman said.