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EXPERTS warned today that a Russian ban on food imports would deal a blow to farmers and exporters.
Moscow has responded to US and EU sanctions over Ukraine with a year-long ban on imports of meat, fish, fruit, vegetables and milk products from the US, Canada, the EU, Norway and Australia.
In 2013, the EU exported €11.8 billion (£9.4bn) in agricultural goods to Russia, while the US sold $1.3bn (£774 million).
Russia accounts for about 10 per cent of EU agricultural exports.
The ban also dealt a blow to Norway’s fishing industry. The Norwegian Seafood Federation said Russia was its biggest single market and worth $1 billion (£595m).
Dutch Federation of Agriculture chairman Albert Jan Maat warned the ban would cause prices to drop and called for help for farmers.
French farm union president Xavier Beulin voiced similar concerns.
“There’s a chance it will flood the European markets with summer crops which could lower prices,” he said.
