Turkey and Russia have reached an agreement on new regulations that will allow exports of fruit and vegetables to the latter to continue even if trading standards appear to have been breached.
Under the new agreement, Russia will inform the agriculture and rural affairs department if there has been a breach of standards by an exporting company, and the individual group will be penalised rather than a blanket ban on Turkish exports being enforced.
If a company breaches standards more than once, it faces an export ban, meaning that sanctions on the whole country can be avoided.
'If Russia determines during audits that a firm has acted contrary toregulations a few times, or has sent the wring products, it will let usknow,' Mehdi Eker, the Turkish minister for agriculture and ruralaffairs, told local press. 'Rather than a general ban, those who continue to make thesame mistakes will be expelled.'
A fresh produce memorandum was drawn up earlier in the month in an attempt to identify and designate reliable farmers and exporters, and they will be monitored regularly as part of the new regulations, assessed every six months.
Fresh produce groups enjoying a problem-free year will have additional export stipulations on them removed, according to the Hurriyet Daily News.
