MOSCOW, July 15. /TASS/. Russian consumer safety watchdog, the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-Being (Rospotrebnadzor) has prevented shipments of more than 2,900 tonnes of products banned for import since sanctions were introduced, the watchdog said in a report on its website on Monday.

"Over the entire period of sanctions, at the checkpoints on the state border of the Russian Federation, the employees of Rospotrebnadzor prevented imports of more than 2,900 tonnes of prohibited goods," the statement read.

Since the summer of 2014, 985 tonnes of import-banned products as well as goods lacking reliable information about their origin have been withdrawn from sale and destroyed.

According to the watchdog, vegetables and fruits accounted for more than half of such products (63%).

In addition, since the commencement of the sanctions, Rospotrebnadzor imposed administrative fines totaling about 866.5 mln rubles ($13.8 mln) on business entities that import and sell products banned for import.

In the summer of 2014, Russia banned imports of a number of food products from the United States, Norway, Australia, Canada and the EU countries in response to anti-Russian sanctions imposed over the situation in Ukraine. Since 2015, the products that have been subject to restrictive measures are destroyed.