Source:  Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE.COM, 3/30/10

USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service said Tuesday that Farmland Foods' Milan, Mo., slaughterhouse is now eligible to ship to Russia pork products produced on or after March 25.

The Farmland plant is the last of 13 major U.S. suppliers that represent 90 percent of U.S. pork exports to Russia that have received official clearance from both FSIS and Russia's Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Service (VPSS).

Most of the approved slaughter plants posted in the FSIS Export Library also have an eligible slaughter date of March 25, though two Cargill plants (Est. #85B and #85O) have eligible dates of March 22.

Another seven U.S. slaughterhouses were not subject to Russia's ban but will have to implement an approved export verification program to maintain their ability to ship to Russia. Those facilities are owned by Hormel (Est. #199N), Greenwood Packing (Est. #242), Sara Lee (Est. #8080), Lynch BBQ (Est. #19717), Abbyland (Est. #15896) and SIG International (Est. #20748).

Several U.S. cold storage facilities also have regained access to the Russian market. Many others were never delisted by VPSS.

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.