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Russia Bans Polish Sprats

The consumer rights watchdog said there were health concerns over a brand of Polish sprats.

Russia's consumer rights watchdog announced a ban Thursday on a certain type of canned fish from Poland, the latest in a series of such prohibitions seen as politically motivated.

Rospotrebnadzor, the watchdog, said in a statement that there were health concerns over a brand of Polish sprats and that inspections had revealed “violations in consumer rights legislation.”

Imports of the sprats in question will be halted from Friday, according to the statement.

The ban is the latest in a series of disagreements with Eastern European countries over food quality, which officials in those countries allege are politically driven.

Poland has been one of the loudest critics of Russian policy in Ukraine.

Earlier this year, Rospotrebnadzor announced a ban on certain types of Polish cheese, previously exempt from the wide-ranging 2014 ban on food imports from countries that slapped sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine crisis.

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