MOSCOW, August 14./ITAR-TASS/. Veterinary standards officials have authorised four more Brazilian pork suppliers to serve the Russian market, bringing the number of approvals to 95 since the beginning of August.

Standards agency Rosselkhoznadzor will lift temporary restrictions on August 18 banning exports to Russia of pork and pork product from three enterprises of major supplier Brazilian Food Company (BRF S.A.). These were imposed after ractopamine a drug making animals more muscular was found in their products.

But suppliers have been ordered to tighten procedures to prevent use of the drug, banned in states of the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, the agency reported on Thursday.

Officials have also lifted temporary restrictions on imports of beef casings from a Brazilian enterprise, conditional on its meeting veterinary criteria.

On August 6, Rosselkhoznadzor announced it was adding 92 enterprises to the list of about 50 Brazilian companies accredited for imports to Russia. These are 31 suppliers of beef by-products, 27 suppliers of poultry, 27 suppliers of beef, four suppliers of pork and by-products, and three suppliers of milk and dairy products.

Russia's government imposed a one-year ban on imports of beef, pork, poultry, fish, cheeses, fruit, vegetables and dairy products from Australia, Canada, the European Union.

“Restrictions come into force as of today for the period of one year, but if our partners display a constructive approach toward co-operation, the Russian government will be ready to revise the terms of the imposed measures,” Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on August 7.