A ban on EU pork products was imposed early in 2014 following the outbreak of African swine fever in the east. This was not part of the embargo on food imports from western countries.

The French Minister for Agriculture said in a statement today that exports could take place in the coming weeks. A total of 70% of French pig fat was exported to Russia before the embargo. It is believed that other EU countries had signed similar agreements with Russia on lifting part of the swine fever-related ban.

However, Russia's veterinary service, the Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Service, was not able to confirm if it had reached an agreement.

Nearly a quarter of all European pigmeat is exported to Russia. The Russian market was an important one for the Irish pigmeat industry. In 2013, Ireland exported 20,165 tonnes of pork and pigmeat to Russia with a value €55m. This was up from 15,057 tonnes (€39m) in 2012.