Source:  Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE.COM, 8/20/09

Russia may remove from its list of eligible exporters 15 U.S. beef companies if Washington does not supply adequate information to guarantee they meet Moscow's standards, according to a report by the Interfax News Agency.

Russia reportedly sent a new query a few days ago, giving Washington a month to respond.

"Earlier our experts inspected [the companies] and identified flaws," Sergei Dankvert, head of Rosselkhoznadzor, the country's food safety watchdog, was quoted as saying. "We asked them to amend them in line with Russian requirements; however, the documents we received speak only of the fulfillment of U.S. requirements."

Dankvert said Russian inspectors are tentatively scheduled to visit the United States sometime around Sept. 21 and conduct an audit of U.S. beef, pork and poultry suppliers. Specific sites will be chosen in a few weeks, he said.