EEC council approves quota for duty-free imports of chicken meat at 140,000 tonnes for Russia in 2024, 10,900 tonnes for Belarus
MOSCOW. Dec 12 (Interfax) - The council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) on Tuesday approved respective tariff preferences for Russia and Belarus in the form of exemptions from customs duties on importing frozen domestic chicken meat intended for use in the production of meat products.
The EEC trade bloc has reported that the quota is set at no more than 140,000 tonnes for Russia in 2024, and up to 10,900 tonnes for Belarus.
The decision affects products under the EAEU Foreign Economic Activity Commodity Nomenclature (FEACN) codes 0207 14 100 9 and 0207 14 500 9. Tariff preferences are provided subject to confirmation of the intended purpose of the imported goods.
The Russian government subcommittee on customs and tariff regulation earlier in November approved implementing a quota for the duty-free import of chicken meat at 160,000 tonnes in 2024, and the Russian side sent the corresponding initiative to the EEC. It was noted that this involves frozen boneless chicken meat, as well as boneless breasts and pieces from them (EAEU FEACN codes 0207 14 100 9 and 0207 14 500 9). Products under these codes are currently subject to a duty of 80%.
EEC Trade Minister Andrei Slepnev was quoted as saying in the statement from the commission's trade bloc that the tariff preferences were temporary. "In parallel, the governments of the EAEU countries will take steps to increase domestic chicken production," he said.
There is still currently unmet demand for these products in the EAEU. "Poultry meat is consumed by the population, including in processed products, such as sausages, semi-finished meat products, and others, and is in extreme demand. However, there remains unmet demand on the domestic market despite the increase in production volumes of raw meat and processed products," the official said, noting that incentivizing imports should balance the domestic chicken market and ensure supply growth in the short term.
