Following that, the Rosselkhoznadzor has suspended authorization procedures for the import of fish products (TN VED 1604) and seafood products (TN VED 1605) from countries enlisted in the corresponding decree.
According to the document, Russia is banning imports of finished or canned fish, shellfish, and other aquatic invertebrates, as well as sturgeon caviar and its substitutes.
Imports are banned from the USA, EU countries, Canada, Norway, Albania, Montenegro, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ukraine.
However, Rosselkhoznadzor has been recording a decrease in import volumes from these countries over the past three years. According to the data provided by the Argus information system, 1704 tons of finished fish products were imported in 2021, 563 tons in 2022, and 290 tons in 2023.
Rosselkhoznadzor believes that the decline in supplies is due to the restrictions resulting from revealed violations. For instance, canned fish from Croatia contained excessive levels of arsenic, E. coli was detected in preserves supplied by Estonia, and salmon pate from Slovenia didn’t contain salmon DNA.
The Russian Federal Agency for Fisheries said that the ban on the import of seafood products will free up market niches for domestic manufacturers.
