Shropshire cheese firm set to lose £2m in business over Russia trade embargo
A Shropshire cheese maker stands to lose out on up to £2 million worth of business after trade sanctions were imposed on the EU by Russia.
The eastern superpower declared a ban on the import of fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, milk and dairy foods from the European Union, the United States, Australia, Canada and Norway, as it looked to exact revenge for sanctions which had been imposed over military activity in the Ukraine.
And Belton Cheese, the award-winning Whitchurch-based producer that makes 75 different cheese, says it will be among those which is affected by the ban.
"We have been dealing with Russia for the last three years," said marketing manager Alison Taylor. "We are one of a very few dairy companies in the UK that has been audited and are allowed to do so, so we have been working quite hard on increasing our business over there.
"This news came as a blow, as trading sanctions have been imposed for the next 12 months. The immediate impact is that we have and order in our cold stores ready to go next week that we won't be able to send out now.
"In the year-to-date we have sold 50 tonnes of cheese into Russia, and expected to do 120 in the first year, and over the next three years that would equate to nearly £2 million worth of business."
Russia is one of a number of foreign markets for the £25 million-turnover family-owned business, which employs 85 people and brings in milk from 85 local farms, and new contracts won in Canada mean that the company will be able to mitigate the impact of the sanctions.
Its goods are sold to a company called Relief, which supplies goods into high-end stores.
In total, the work in Russia makes up around two per cent of Belton's business, but has been the subject of extensive groundwork which has included visits to trade fairs in Moscow.
And Ms Taylor added: "It's frustrating given the time and effort that has gone into marketing, and getting everything into place, and it's frustrating for our Russian customers.
"We are not surprised that it has happened, but we are disappointed, as are our customers, but it's out of our hands.
"With exports you can't afford to take your eye off the ball as there are political and economic implications that can affect that business."
The trade restrictions will create a gap in Russia's food market worth up to £5.65 billion, and it is in negotiations with South American countries over taking imports from there.
