US assesses losses from Russian food ban at $715m

The US Department of Agriculture has assessed the losses from Moscow's food import prohibition at $715 million per year, basing the estimate on 2013 imports of $1.3 billion, with the ban covering 55% of sales, the authority said in a statement Monday.
On August 7, Russia banned imports of beef, pork, poultry, fish, cheese, dairy products, fruit and vegetables from Australia, Canada, Norway, the US and the EU for one year in a response to Western sanctions.
The US has an 4% share in Russian food imports, while the EU is the largest importer with a 40% share.
American companies were the largest suppliers of nuts to Russia in 2013 with the US almond supplies standing at 95% of all almonds imported to Russia last year.
The US accounted for about 50% of chicken imports to Russia, while Russia ranked fourth in US export with a 6% share.
Pork, beef and fish supplies were less significant both for the US and Russia, the authority said.