Austria seeking markets for agri-food products to counter Russian ban

The Austrian government has announced a new export drive Thursday to promote its agri-food products to various foreign markets in a bid to make up for losses incurred by Russian sanctions, the Austria Press Agency reported.

Austrian Minister of Agriculture Andrae Rupprechter said in Vienna the goal of the move is to make up for losses from Russia's ban of the food and agricultural products imports from the European Union, in particular through intensifying exports to Asian and North African nations.

He specifically named China as an interesting potential market.

Austrian Farmers Union President Jakob Auer said the Russian embargo has made the price situation in the categories of meat, milk, cheese, fruit, and vegetables, "difficult" for Austrian farmers, and underlined the need to find new export opportunities in other foreign countries.

Chamber of Agriculture President Hermann Schultes warned against underestimating "the drama of the situation," and likened the import ban to a "tsunami" for the European argi-food sector.

He said the embargo came at a time when the sector is in a "sensitive transition period," and without appropriate counter-measures from the European Union it would result in "gross interference in the markets."

In 2013, Austrian agri-food exports to Russia amounted to over 300 million U.S. dollars, and Rupprechter estimated of this total exports around 130 million dollars will be affected by the sanctions.

The most recent estimates from mid-August indicated the sanctions have cost the Austrian agri-food industry almost 6 million dollars since they came into effect earlier in August.