Russia's ban on pig imports, in place since an outbreak of classical swine fever in Lithuania in the spring of 2011, is preventing the country's pig breeders from recovering, Saulius Leonavičius, CEO of pig-breeding company Saerimner, told the paper.
"We are impressed by how quickly the Latvian Agriculture Ministry reacted to the Russians' decision. We wish our authorities protected the business in the same way. We did not see any such reaction from our officials even after the swine disease outbreak ended," he said.
Jonas Milius, head of the Lithuanian State Food and Veterinary Service, said: "We are taking part in negotiations together with the EU and do not seek to take a leading position in the talks. Food product exports are on the rise today and we do not want to risk undermining other business areas."
Many pig breeding farms posted losses last year because of high prices fodder and a drop in pig prices due to the export ban, but they would recover fast if the ban were lifted, according to Verslo Žinios.
