Translated material
Cattle bustle
Suspicious meat from the Voronezh region may provoke a massive inspection of Moscow markets
Farmers and entrepreneurs trying to sell their agricultural products in the capital's markets, apparently, will face a total check. Moscow's sanitary and veterinary services are already on alert and are ready to begin a massive inspection of markets. The reason for it could be yesterday’s “sanitary day”, which was forcedly declared at the Kuntsevo market due to the fact that one of the batches of meat brought for sale to the capital from the Voronezh region seemed suspicious to specialists.Based on the external signs of the goods, inspectors suspected the presence of anthrax in the cow carcasses and demanded the immediate suspension of the work of some parts of the market. Their sanitation may be delayed until the end of the examination that the seized products are currently undergoing. In addition, the city’s veterinary committee does not rule out that in connection with the first case of suspicion of a dangerous infectious disease this year, all farm products imported into the capital will be subject to strict control.
As the press secretary of the capital's veterinary department, Olga Seregina, told Vremya Novostei, on Wednesday, as a result of a routine inspection of non-industrial agricultural products, changes in internal organs were discovered in a batch of meat from a farm in the village of Verkhniy Karachansk, Gribanovsky district, Voronezh region, which raised suspicion among epidemiologists about the presence of a pathogen. anthrax. A batch of 12 cattle carcasses was seized and, together with the products that were nearby during transportation, placed “under guard and in isolated storage.” Samples of meat, which has caused mistrust among veterinarians, according to Ms. Seregina, are aimed at “more subtle research.” In addition, disinfection of premises on the territory of the market, the production laboratory of veterinary and sanitary examination, as well as transport was carried out.
As a representative of the city's veterinary committee assured the Vremya Novostei correspondent, the health of the townspeople who had shopped at the Kuntsevsky market the day before in the meat departments does not cause concern among the capital's epidemiologists - suspicions of anthrax arose during a pre-sale inspection, and the dubious product did not reach the shelves. However, epidemiologists still closed buyers’ access to some areas of the market, and also banned new supplies of meat until the final conclusion of laboratory tests was received. In addition, as stated in the press release of the city veterinary committee, “in order to ensure the functioning of the market, a mobile laboratory for veterinary and sanitary examination has been deployed to conduct veterinary and sanitary examination of all types of products, with the exception of the meat group.”
On the one hand, officials assure that citizens have no reason to worry. In particular, as the Interfax agency reported, citing a source in the city administration, the authorities do not intend to stop trading in products of plant origin, as well as dairy products, on the market. In addition, Larisa Korzhneva, Deputy Head of the Moscow Consumer Market and Services Department, noting the professionalism and efficiency of the market employees, has already stated that the beef from the Kuntsevsky market turned out to be “clean.” According to her, an additional analysis by veterinary surveillance on Wednesday evening “showed that the anthrax pathogen was not detected in the meat, but it was decided to do a more in-depth analysis for the presence of other bacteria.”
Nevertheless, the capital’s mayor’s office probably remembers that it was the meat aisles of the Kuntsevsky market that were already a source of panic in 2006, since then laboratory tests confirmed the presence of the ulcer pathogen, although the batch of meat had a veterinary certificate. True, it was issued by the veterinary expert of the Bednodemyanensky district of the Penza region, Mekheri Bataeva, who was sentenced to a suspended sentence of one year in prison for such a forgery.
In Voronezh they did not wait for claims from Moscow. The head of the veterinary supervision department of the Rosselkhoznadzor department for the Voronezh region, Semyon Pershin, has already stated: if the capital’s veterinarians’ suspicions regarding products from this region are confirmed, “an official investigation will be ordered to find out the true origin of the meat, as well as who issued the documents for it.” So far, judging by Mr. Pershin’s words, regional experts are inclined to believe that false documents were attached to the meat, because over the past two years no cases of anthrax have been registered in the Voronezh region.
As Vremya Novostei was told by the Moscow Veterinary Committee, laboratory testing can take up to two weeks. “But as soon as we have the first accurate results, especially if they are reassuring, we will immediately announce them,” Olga Seregina assured, adding that experts consider statements by representatives of the city’s department of consumer market and services based on interim results to be premature.
Officials, in turn, seem to be quite satisfied with the interim results. In any case, the press secretary of the city department of consumer market and services, Petr Arakcheev, said that a decision had already been made to tighten control over the import of products to 18 agricultural markets in Moscow. The mayor's office expects similar steps from Rosvetnadzor. “Only Rosvetnadzor can decide to conduct inspections of meat products in all city markets,” Mr. Arakcheev clarified.