Russia Lifts Pork Ban on Five US States
RUSSIA - Russia's food safety regulator Rosselkhoznadzor has lifted a ban on pork imports from five US states imposed earlier due to the spread of the A/H1N1 flu virus."We are lifting the ban on imports of produce from the U.S. states of Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Nevada and Ohio," the body announced on its website today.
Rosselkhoznadzor also imposed a ban on supplies of all types of meat, produced and packed after 6 May from the US state of Illinois, according to RIA Novosti.
Russia has imposed a ban on the import of pork from Mexico and some US states to try and prevent the spread of swine flu to Russia, despite claims that the virus cannot be transmitted by meat.
The World Health Organization has reiterated that there is no risk of infection from the consumption of well-cooked pork and pork products.
The ban on meat imports from the US states of California, Delaware, Texas and New York is still in force. Russia has also imposed a ban on pork imports from South Carolina, Arizona and Massachusetts.
The A/H1N1 virus has been officially confirmed in 1,893 people in 23 countries, at least 30 people have died.
According to the WHO, a total of 642 cases of the human A/H1N1 flu infection have been registered in the US, resulting in one death. The organization has not yet confirmed media reports about a second death from the virus in the country.