Moscow, Russia – Russia has announced a suspension of dairy product imports from Armenia, citing serious health violations and supply chain tracing failures. The decision, made by Russia’s agricultural safety agency Rosselkhoznadzor, comes amid a series of Russian restrictions on Armenian food products this summer, which observers widely interpret as an economic pressure campaign targeting Yerevan for its pursuit of closer ties with the European Union. The dairy ban is set to take effect on Monday, July 27, and will temporarily bar products from five named Armenian companies.
According to a statement from Rosselkhoznadzor, a weeklong inspection that concluded Tuesday found that “milk provided by infected livestock was discovered to be used in the production of dairy goods exported to Russia.” The agency also accused Armenian authorities of failing to build a reliable verification system, mirroring violations uncovered in 2023 and 2024. Inspectors further discovered that high-fat dairy products were being made with raw materials from third countries, violating prior agreements to use domestic inputs or those sourced from the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union.
Rosselkhoznadzor specifically highlighted concerns about milk collected from individual private farms, stating that they “cannot guarantee the safety of their yields.” The agency called for urgent attention to Armenia’s laboratory infrastructure. The ban follows a separate decision by Russia to prohibit imports of tomatoes and other produce from five Uzbekistan-based exporters, citing pest contamination. The escalating trade restrictions come as Armenia deepens its diplomatic and economic engagement with the EU, a move that has strained its relationship with Moscow, its traditional ally and key trading partner within the Eurasian Economic Union.
