Russian sanitary authorities sent a report about plant inspections between June 30 and July 14 in which they found some non-compliance with sanitary rules.

First Fresh Foods held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday at its facility in Gainesville.

The facility will predominantly supply McDonald's restaurants in Russia with Chicken McNuggets as well as other chicken products.

Russia’s new restrictions on the feed additive ractopamine have reduced the number of Canadian plants eligible for exporting.

Russia will import beef from just five of the 25 Mexican processing plants from which it had previously bought as a result of a ban on the feed additive ractopamine.

Russia is set to impose new restrictions on its meat imports, which are expected to be related to concerns over use of the feed additive ractopamine in Canadian livestock.

Russia decided to ban imports of U.S. beef, pork and turkey starting on Feb. 11 because it was concerned about traces of the feed additive ractopamine in this meat.

China and South Africa have halted imports of beef from Brazil following a case of atypical BSE that was confirmed last week.

The Kremlin is asserting that its decision to ban beef and pork imports with ractopamine was based on food safety and not retaliation for a human rights bill passed by the U.S. Senate.

Russia has set a deadline for this Friday for U.S. exporters to certify that their beef and pork products have been tested to confirm it is free of the common feed additive ractopamine.