OREANDA-NEWS. January 27, 2010. The Russian tests for antibiotic content in dairy products imported for sale on the domestic market are questionable, said First Deputy Chairman of the State Standards Committee Viktor Nazarenko.

 “Almost all neighboring countries control the content of antibiotics in raw materials. Russians test finished products. In Europe, they only control raw stuff,” Nazarenko said.

He said Belarus would keep applying European safety standards. “The Russian methods are questionable,” he added.

The Belarusian side is now in talks with Russian specialists over the objectivity of Russian tests.

First Deputy Agriculture Minister Nadezhda Kotkovets admitted that Russians sometimes discovered the antibiotic tetracycline in imports from Belarus.

She said all dairy farms were equipped with monitors, and there were 59 enzyme-linked immunoassay devices for additional control. “But the measures we take are not sufficient, as Russian watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor often discovers residual antibiotics in our products,” she said.

 “A letter we received from Rosselkhoznadzor on January 13, 2010 allows us to have up to 7.2 micrograms of tetracycline per kilogram of products in our exports to Russia. Most of our makers meet this standard,” Kotkovets said.