09/11/2007 - When unsanitary processing becomes a corrupted political move

Quality questions over fishery imports to Russia from Norway could be covering up a political agenda. (Photo: FIS)

WEEKEND FEATURE: When unsanitary processing becomes a corrupted political move

WORLDWIDE
Friday, November 09, 2007, 23:50 (GMT + 9)


A trade war could be in the making as a result of Russian sanitary inspectors earlier this autumn visiting Norway inspecting pelagic processing plants and in initial messages were said to be in good order, but then events turned around.

A tidy agreement had been drawn up during meetings between the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and Russian authority, the Rostechnadzor, as inspections should have gone on with no unexpected snags with the remaining factories to be inspected. However, suddenly the Russians announced the deal was off and now only seven Norwegian processing plants would be allowed to export herring to Russia after 15 November. In another about face this date was then suddenly changed to the 15 December, without further explanation.

The Russian about face

The mysterious turn about came when suddenly the Russian veterinary service announced that they had found salmonella, staphylococcus, and other dangerous bacteria in consignments from three Norwegian plants. As of 15 November they were told to stop further exports to Russia.

"We are taking these allegations very serious and will inspect those plants," announced director Roald Waage of the Norwegian Food Safety Authority.

He is speaking diplomatically to not further infuriate Russian authorities, because, if in fact the allegations were true, then the plants are not the only ones responsible for the mishap, and part the blame lands in squarely on the shoulders of the Norwegian Food Safety Authority.

It is difficult to believe the Norwegian authority's inspectors would be slumbering through quality controls over the past few moths as Russian inspectors were running up and down the coast inspecting Norwegian processing facilities. However, Waage can not blatantly call the Russians liars either. He knows, based on numerous media reports that there is a game going on in the Russian fishing industry. Foreign investors are concerned over how their Russian investments are at risk in the volatile business climate.

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority has not published the names of the three processors being blocked from exporting to Russia. They only say that the bacteria found in Norwegian pelagic fish during inspections has been very low.

Herring is transported in RSW-tanks in Norway where water is chilled down to around zero degrees. On arrival to factories the fish is usually pumped directly into chilled storage tanks or directly into production facilities resulting in the fish being packed and frozen without being in contact with any open environment.

Salmonella contamination is usually a result of bird’s feces coming into contact with fish or production equipment. Staphylococcus contamination of seafood is usually a result of cooked seafood being contaminated by the bacteria Staphylococcus aurea. Bacteria is commonly known to contaminate raw seafood products are Clostridium perfringens, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp and Shigella spp.

Staphylococcus is thus a surprising contamination for frozen herring, as it is usually transmitted from the hands of humans handling cooked seafood.

This, however, is merely the tip of the iceberg of a larger drama that is unveiling.

Media reports slander imports

The Russians have more ammunition against Norwegian seafood processors and fishery industry. At a press conference a week ago Igor Kapnulin chief inspector for Rostechnadzor announced that half of all fish sold in Moscow is below quality standard set by the authorities, and that the situation is even worse in other parts of the countries.

According the Russian press bureau Izvestija a large portion of imported fish is contaminated, and some of it even by yellow staphylococcus.
They report that it is usually low quality fish that arrives to Russia from overseas. China, Thailand, Chile, Lithuania, Vietnam, Iceland and Norway sometimes delivers the poorest quality products to Russia, that include contamination with such bacteria as fetus bacteria, staphylococcus, and salmonella.

The news also quoted the chief inspector stating that most processing plants inspected in other countries have been found to be below the standard demanded by Russian sanitary regulations.

A news clipping from the Russia RIA Novosti last Wednesday stated: "Only seven out of more than 40 Norwegian companies will be allowed to export fish to Russia beginning 15 December." The Russian industrial safety watchdog (Rostechnadzor) stated in a press release that the embargo was being introduced following an inspection of Norwegian companies by Russian specialists.

Market analysts believe that this would have grave economic consequences for Norwegian exporters. According to official statistics, in 2006 Norway exported 197,300 metric tonnes of fish, including herring, mackerel, haddock and capelin worth USD198.6 million.

Experts said that the sanctions would not reduce fish supplies on the Russian market. Vladislav Kochetkov, an analyst with the Finam investment company, stated: "The market will be divided, with Norwegian companies approved by the regulator increasing supplies, and Russian producers boosting output." He said that the market re-division would raise prices of these fish by 5-10 per cent.

The embargo could be a result of officials' desire to support Russian producers, which are working at 30-50 per cent of their capacity. Some experts said that Norway often supplied fish illegally caught in Russian territorial waters and transferred abroad”.

The hidden agenda

The question remains over what is the real agenda behind the Russian actions, and why are representatives of Rostechnadzor changing their assessments over the sanitary conditions of the Norwegian seafood industry overnight?

There are big changes coming to the Russian fishery industry. The terrain is now being leveled out so the new industry can be built. “A monster-department for the Russian fishing industry. More power than a normal department. The risk of corruption is high, and the process is more than anything else a show of longing for the old Soviet Union”, writes the Russian analyst Pavel Kudjokin in the Russian paper Vedomosti.

According to the article in Vedomosti the new Russian fishing industry is to be financed through a credit line of RBL 50 billion (USD 2.42 billion) available for fishing vessels and processing plants. President Vladimir Putin's government wants to see Russian fishing vessels plying the oceans in hunt of fish far off from Russia shores, in a sort of expansionist policy.

The informed Norwegian-Russian speaking, fishery journalist Morten Vikeby last week, in an article in the Norwegian fishery paper Fiskeribladet wrote about changes to the political structure controlling Russian fishery sector.

“When somebody calls the new fishery management a monster with great danger of becoming even more corrupted, it looks like most experts with a point of view deem it is common sense to centralise all powers, from the 15 different ministries the industry has to relate to today, into one body. It still stands to see how a new fishery committee will function. Since early 1990s Russian fishery management has been reorganised a number of times and the leaders have been changed frequently.

Right now signs are looming of the intention of reinstating Russian pride as a fishery nation. Increased activity in all world oceans seem to be a priority. In august said Vice Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov that the number of departments that is dealing with the fishery industry is above any logic number. Prime Minister Fradkov, who is leaving his post, said it is necessary for one authority to take care of the needs of the industry,” writes Vikeby.

Campaign against Norwegian seafood

In other news reports marketing director Polina Druzjinina of the import company Rok in St. Petersburg has said that there is an ongoing campaign against Norwegian seafood imports, as Russian veterinary authority considers Norwegian fish as a possible health risk for Russian consumers.

“Norwegian fish have very good quality, and the last year we have had very few complaints in the consignments we received. On average we are 100 per cent satisfied with the products we receive from Norway, "says Druzijinina to the paper Fiskaren.

Rok imports herring, salmon, and trout from Norway, and it is her opinion that there is a slander campaign against Norwegian seafood as the government seeks to rebuild the Russian domestic fishery sector.

Russian President Putin has declared that he will have a stop the illegal fishery and has also said that as much fish as possible caught by Russian vessels in Russian economic zone has to be landed in Russia.

The Chairman of The Russian Fishery committee, Andrej Krajnij earlier was quoted by media as saying that Norwegian salmon is farmed in containers. He also allegest that Norway has also received fish feed from China containing bovine meal.

This is a far cry from reality, however, and could be distorting the truth win over opinion, or perhaps he is simply showing a lack of knowledge when talking about the industry in other countries. This would substantiate the Rostechnadzor blocking of seafood imports, which is a tough measure for a nation's authorities to take against another country.

The Rostechnadzor either must prove that Norwegian fish is contaminated, or they will be deemed as corrupted by their government looking for ways of stopping Norwegian products without coming up against international trade rules. When similar actions were taken against Norwegian salmon, they could not prove their charges.

Russians are not prone to involve themselves in such procedures as substantiating what they allege, in a tradition that goes back to the old communist era, and even farther back to when they were a peasant nation ruled by aristocratic despots.

Not only Norway is affected by such traditions that permeate their policies, and manifest in the Russian veterinary authorities and their allegations. Their inspectors have been visiting companies world wide for the same reasons, to see whether they fulfill Russian sanitary regulations. The problem is, nobody has been issued a translated copy, or for that sake, a Russian language copy either, of Russian regulations by which to comply.

Corruption uncovered?

What is possibly more interesting is the fact uncovered by the Innovation Norways office in Moscow. Responsible for the seafood sector, Lubov Bychkova, showed the journalist Vikeby a request from a Russian company written one week before the Rostechnadzor announced its new rules effective as of 15 November, and later changed to 15 December.

This request has the internal figures for the seven companies allowed to continue to export. The question rmains as to why one importer is granted a favour, making it possible to place orders quickly before others are even informed? Less exporters will give less production capacity intended for the world 'slargest herring market, and possibly result in higher prices for Russian importers, except for those told beforehand. They can reap bountiful profits because of their prior knowledge.

Vikeby dos not say so, neither does Bychkova, but the looming stench of corruption is so powerful that Russian authorities should take a look into the sanitary conditions inside Rostechnadzor. Even if this authority were to be helping the Putin government actively raise seafood prices in the Russian market to make it easier to finance the rebuilding of the Russian industry, there is no reason to allege outright that Putin condones any form of corruption.

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority will be kept busy finding the facts. If they have been too careless in keeping controls with Norwegian processing plants, or are they just seeing the result of a Russian game?

Russian authorities have to present the international seafood industry with concrete facts, and clean away the bad stench that has permeated the air of fair trade. It is not easy to find the truth, and sift through what is fact and what is fiction in the current situation.

Until the facts are revealed, the Russian consumer is the one who is losing most, along with Russian importers, Norwegian fishers and processors, and the thousands of other seafood companies world wide who actively trade with Russia, during what seems to be an ever increasing volatile political climate.


By Terje Engoe
www.fis.com