Translated material
Herzegovina chlorine
Gennady Onishchenko probes suppliers of American chicken, and advises Georgian winemakers not to rely on Stalin
Chief Sanitary Doctor of Russia Gennady Onishchenko does not exclude the possibility of resuming negotiations with Georgian winemakers and mineral water producers, as well as their subsequent return to the domestic market. “We are ready to consider their proposals, we are ready to cooperate with them,” Mr. Onishchenko said yesterday, warning, however, that his department will put forward very tough and sometimes original conditions to potential suppliers. Yesterday, the head of Rospotrebnadzor also made a statement on American chicken, the import of which into our country has been prohibited since January 1, 2010. Hams may soon return to Russian shelves, suggested Gennady Onishchenko.According to him, an example for unreasonable Georgian entrepreneurs in the matter of establishing relations with the Russian sanitary service should be Moldovan winemakers, who, after a series of checks and “elimination of technological violations,” managed to return to our market after two and a half years of forced absence (since March 2006 to December 2008). True, for this, most Moldovan companies had to allow inspectors from Russia into production, provide them with technological documentation and reporting, and also join (or renew their membership) in the Russian wine association AURA (Association of Alcohol Market Participants). A local branch of this association has even opened in Moldova, uniting only “reliable” market participants. And so that Moldovan entrepreneurs do not relax - after all, a year and a half has passed since the ban was lifted, at the beginning of 2010, Rospotrebnadzor “without declaring war” turned away two railway tanks of wine materials at the border.
The Georgians turned out to be much more stubborn and still could not get used to the idea of a direct dictate from Moscow. “We went out, looked at their enterprises, gave an assessment, made comments, then took the products, and now we are stumbling somewhere,” RIA Novosti quotes Gennady Onishchenko’s confused complaints about the intractable Georgians. At the same time, he directly explained which way Georgian entrepreneurs should move in order to get rid of restrictions as quickly as possible. As in the case of Moldovan producers, they simply need to take the most neutral political position and, if possible, demonstrate disagreement with the statements of the political leadership of their country. According to Mr. Onishchenko, he is skeptical about the Georgian government, but his service is ready to interact with businessmen. Unless, of course, they prove that “they do not produce ten times more than they can actually produce of the exclusive wine that Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin and his entourage drank.”
“Georgian winemakers are being hinted that it would be advisable, for example, to create an association of importers and producers of Georgian wines in Russia. And clearly separate the position of Georgian business from the position of Georgian politicians. Moldovan wines were returned using the same scheme,” Vadim Drobiz, head of the Center for Research on Federal and Regional Alcohol Markets (CIFRRA), explained to Vremya Novostei.
Winemakers and producers of cognacs and mineral waters that were once popular in our country may be forced to come to terms with this approach to a noticeably worsened financial situation. The production of Georgian wine alone has decreased five to six times since the Russian market closed to Georgian drinks. According to CIFRRA, in 2005, more than 50 million bottles of wine were supplied from Georgia to Russia, which amounted to approximately 5% of the total volume of the wine market in our country. Moreover, that year, a total of 60 million bottles were shipped for export in Georgia. “We can say that, despite all efforts, Georgian alcohol producers have not been able to compensate for their forced withdrawal from the Russian market,” says Vadim Drobiz. “There was hope in Ukraine, the second largest market for Georgian alcohol after Russia, but as a result of the crisis, sales there decreased by one and a half times.” According to the expert, if the import of drinks from Georgia resumes, producers from this country can count on a maximum of 1% of the Russian alcohol market, that is, in the best case, they will be able to sell 10-15 million bottles here per year.
Unlike Georgian alcohol, for which a replacement was easily found, in place of American chicken legs there was a gaping void. After all, there are no other meat products in the price range of 40-45 rubles. per kilogram is not available on the domestic market. Food market analysts have repeatedly warned that if supplies of overseas chicken legs stop, most Russians will sharply reduce their consumption of animal proteins, since domestic products are several times more expensive. Note that the last stocks of American legs were sold out before May 1, 2010.
Considering the social significance of this product, Rospotrebnadzor began negotiations with the American side back in January, immediately after supplies were stopped due to high chlorine content in poultry meat. To discuss the features of the American technology for disinfecting slaughtered carcasses, a delegation of 30 employees from the US Department of Health and the US Department of Agriculture, the federal service that controls the quality of food and drugs (FDA) and even the State Department flew to Moscow. “Since January, there has been an active exchange of letters between the American and Russian sides, clarification of positions and bargaining,” one of their participants told Vremya Novostei about the progress of these protracted negotiations. “We met with American Ambassador Beyrle last week. We agreed on four positions in order to comply with Russian legislation and so that the Americans would not give up their already political problems. We seem to have found this move,” Mr. Onishchenko told reporters yesterday after a long pause. He explained that if the US Department of Agriculture and Rospotrebnadzor of Russia exchange corresponding letters, “then it will be possible to begin to restore supplies” of poultry meat not treated with chlorine. But he did not specify when this could happen. “The parties continue to work on the agreement, and we hope to soon resume supplies from the United States,” American Ambassador John Beyrle told the media.