Senator Chuck Grassley made the comment below about a news report that U.S. exports of beef and pork to Russia will be stopped on February 11, with Russia wanting to require that the meat be free of the feed additive ractopamine. Sen. Grassley has protested concerns about ractopamine as a violation of science-based standards required by the World Trade Organization. In December, the U.S. Senate approved Permanent Normal Trade Relations status as part of Russia’s gaining membership in the 157-member World Trade Organization.
“With WTO membership comes an obligation to abide by the science-based WTO standards for trade,” Grassley said. “It looks like Russia is ready to put up more unjustified, non-scientific barriers to pork and beef from the United States. There have been concerns about Russia’s non-tariff trade barriers for awhile and, unfortunately, the Administration failed to press hard enough on these issues last year in negotiating Russia’s entry to the WTO. Russia is an important market for pork and beef producers in Iowa and other parts of the United States. The U.S. Trade Representative needs to take every action possible in response to Russia’s ban.”
