The hunt for Turkish tomatoes on in Russian open air markets

Following fears that Turkish tomatoes were bringing the Mediterranean fruit fly into their country with them, Russian officials put a ban, effective from May 30 of this year, on all importation of Turkish tomatoes. Suspecting that Turkish exporters are still using a land route through Azerbayjan to get their tomatoes into Russia, official from Moscow's Agricultural Ministry are now sweeping out through open markets in the capital and in other areas of Russia, checking for the presence of the "illegal" tomatoes. Illegal tomatoes making their way in from Azeri landAccording to yesterday's "Noviye Izvestiya" newspaper, the inspection of open air markets in Russia is not as effective as Agricultural Ministry officials had hoped; Turkish tomatoes are still in the country. Said Sergei Dankvert, Director of Agricultural Inspectors, "We put the ban on Turkish agricultural imports into effect as of May 30. But Turkish exporters have acted very clever, and are bringing in tomatoes through Azerbayjan, pretending they come from Azerbayjan. If it is revealed that illegal fruits and vegetables have come through Azerbayjan, we will blame Azerbayjan. We are warning their authorities to take action on this front." Press has begun to lament the banRussian newspapers have started to lament the ban, reminding readers that summer in Russia does not last very long, and that before they know it, fall will be upon them. Warned the Noviye Izvestiya newspaper, "In a Russia hit by inflation, the prices of fruits and vegetables at the market will hit the Russian people in the end. Despite the fact that the highest echelons of Turkish and Russian administration have taken this problem into hand, the Russian agricultural inspectors are behaving too harshly. It may take months for the ban to be lifted." Is there jealousy behind this all?Speculations abound that the Russian ban on Turkish fruits and vegetables is related much more to political reasons than to the presence of any Mediterranean fruit fly. Not only is Turkey attracting millions of Russian tourists per year, but, as Russian Black Sea Governor Alexander Chachev said awhile back to local leadership "While our tomatoes rot on the field, you continue to import tomatoes from the other side of the sea." The talk now is that the Russians were just looking for a reason to ban the Turkish tomatoes. Â