Russia Bans Armenian Dairy Imports Over Alleged Health Violations

Russia’s agricultural safety agency announced Friday that it will suspend imports of dairy products from Armenia, citing health violations and supply chain tracing failures.

Rosselkhoznadzor’s decision follows a raft of Russian restrictions on the import and transit of Armenian food products this summer, which observers widely view as an economic pressure campaign targeting Yerevan as it pursues closer ties with the European Union

“During the latest review, milk provided by infected livestock was discovered to be used in the production of dairy goods exported to Russia,” Rosselkhoznadzor said in a statement following a weeklong inspection that concluded Tuesday.

In a directive issued to its regional branches, the agency said that the dairy ban will take effect Monday, July 27, and named five Armenian companies whose products will be temporarily barred from entering Russia.

Rosselkhoznadzor added that inspectors also uncovered high-fat dairy products made with raw materials from third countries, violating prior agreements to use domestic inputs or those sourced from the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union.

Accusing Armenian authorities of failing to build a reliable verification system, the agency said the issues mirror violations uncovered in 2023 and 2024.

“This is especially true for milk collected from individual private farms, which cannot guarantee the safety of their yields,” Rosselkhoznadzor said, adding that Armenia’s laboratory infrastructure requires “urgent attention.”

Separately, Russia also banned imports of tomatoes and other produce from five Uzbekistan-based exporters starting Thursday, citing alleged pest contamination.

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