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Moldova pledges action on Russian wine ban

Chief of the Rospotrebnadzor consumer rights agency, Gennady Onishchenko said the return of wines to the Russian market would be studied individually with every winemaker

CHISINAU, September 23 (Itar-Tass) - Moldova will fulfill alcohol quality requirements to win renewed access to the Russian market, Moldovan Agriculture and Food Industry Minister Vasily Bumakov said on Monday after talks in Moscow.

“We discussed Russia’s requirements for our alcohol products to recommence cooperation,” Bumakov said, adding that he had met the chief of the Rospotrebnadzor consumer rights agency, Gennady Onishchenko. “There is an action plan that we should resolve as soon as possible. Only after this a decision will be taken on resuming Moldovan wine exports to Russia."

Russia banned imports on September 10 after Rospotrebnadzor found the hazardous substance dibutylphthalate in batches of Moldovan wine.

Onishchenko said the return of wines to the Russian market would be studied individually with every winemaker, as had happened after a previous embargo in 2006. Addressing Russia's claims at that time had taken two years. Moldova wines' 30 percent market share had slumped to around 5%.

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