Source:  Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 6/17/11

Russia on Wednesday lifted a ban on imports of poultry from North Carolina that stemmed from a preliminary finding of low-pathogenic avian influenza, USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said in an update on its website.

The preliminary finding in a single flock of turkeys in North Carolina in March had also prompted Japan to impose a ban. As of late Thursday, there was no update to the status of Japan’s ban on FSIS’s website.

Meanwhile, North Carolina poultry from birds slaughtered before March 16 and on or after June 15 are eligible for export to Russia. Product produced between those two dates is ineligible, FSIS said.

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