Market

Market

Thursday, January 21, 2010

"COLD WAR" ERA REVISITED-RUSSIA VS AMERICA TRADE FEUD


The on going Chicken 'war' between Russia and the US makes an interesting reading. The Chicken export to Russia from the US valued at about $ 800 million is in jeopardy after the objection raised by the former to the use of Chlorine for sanitization. While the US maintains that use of immersion cooling with 30-40 ppm available chlorine is a permitted protocol for destroying pathogenic bacteria, no less a person than the Prime Minister of Russia declared that such chickens cannot enter his country. Whether this is the politics of the old "Cold War" era being revisited or there is a genuine technical problem, one does not know.

According to some US Senators "while the Russian government's varied justifications centered on sanitary measures, analyses or guidelines of international agencies such as the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) or the Codex Alimentarius do not support Russia's conclusions. As such, attempts to manage the flow of imports raises questions regarding Russia's willingness and readiness to become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO)".

If the US can impose its quality and safety standards on other countries exporting food materials for American consumers, Russia also may be justified in taking the stand that Chlorine treated chicken is not acceptable to it.There are many alternate technology options to the US avoiding Chlorine and if it has to maintain its exports of Chicken to Russia it has to meet the buyer's requirements. It will be interesting to watch the development and see who is going to blink first in this ridiculous trade war!.
V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

No comments: