Russia tightens control of Turkish food imports

The Russian government on Thursday tightened control over imports of farm products from Turkey as ties between the two countries plummeted after the downing of a Russian warplane.

"Given the repeated violations of Russian standards by Turkish producers, the Russian government has ordered Rosselkhoznadzor (the animal and plant watchdog) to put deliveries of agricultural products and food from Turkey under strict control," Agriculture Minister Alexander Tkachev said in a statement.

The Agriculture Ministry had found in an inspection that an average of 15 percent of Turkish farm products did not comply with Russian standards, said the statement.

This year, residues of banned and harmful substances in Turkish products of animal origin have been discovered at least 40 times, while excessive levels of pesticides, nitrates and nitrites have been detected in Turkish fruit and vegetable products, the statement added.

Rosselkhoznadzor said Wednesday that it would ban poultry meat imports from a Turkish factory as from Dec. 1 after it discovered prohibited and dangerous substances in its products. The watchdog denied any link between the ban and the souring of relations between the two countries.

Turkey-Russia relations have plummeted after Turkey downed a Russian Su-24 warplane on the Syrian border on Tuesday for alleged violation of its air space. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the incident a "stab in the back," and warned of serious consequences.