Russian consumers destined to buy radioactive vegetables and meat from Chernobyl

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Russian consumers destined to buy radioactive

vegetables and meat from Chernobyl

 

 

 

 

Russian consumers destined to buy radioactive

vegetables and meat from

Chernobyl

 

04/21/2005 18:05

 

Strontium does not contaminate meat, although the

substance penetrates into

animals' bones

 

The volume of agricultural deliveries from Belarus to

Russia has experienced

a significant increase lately. The range of imported

products will include

the ones manufactured in the region of Belarus, which

suffered from the

Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe in 1986.

<http://english.pravda.ru/img/2005/04/cernob.jpg>

 

The total volume of commodity turnover between Russia

and Belarus made up

almost $6 billion in 2004; agricultural products

traditionally make up the

biggest part of the export from Belarus, the

Nezavisimaya Gazeta wrote.

Moscow is the first city on the list to receive

Belarussian food stuffs - 42

percent. The growth of the Belarussian export to

Moscow is said to add 25-30

percent in 2005.

 

There are 670 agricultural farms in Belarus situated

on the territories,

which the Chernobyl nuclear power plant contaminated

19 years ago. Only 19

of 670 farms are to complete the so-called

" re-specialization " program,

which will let them manufacture " normatively pure "

products, according to

affirmations from the Belarussian authorities. All the

rest agricultural

farms are to be re-specialized during the forthcoming

five years.

 

Belarussian officials believe that agricultural

technologies will not allow

strontium and caesium (two most radioactive elements)

penetrate into

products. That is why, officials say, the production

will conform to

sanitary requirements of the Belarussian Healthcare

Ministry. Local

scientists say that Belarus makes clean products,

which correspond with

requirements of numerous supervising agencies, and can

be classified as

conventional meat and vegetables.

 

There can be a lot of details found on the matter,

though. Strontium does

not contaminate meat, although the substance

penetrates into animals' bones.

If such a bone is used for cooking soup, the dish will

be rather hazardous.

In addition, agricultural products grown on the

Chernobyl-polluted areas do

not receive any special marks, which deprives a buyer

of an opportunity to

decline a purchase.

 

Belarus is going to commemorate the 19th anniversary

of the Chernobyl

disaster on April 26th. Belarussian President

Alexander Lukashenko is to

visit the Chernobyl area - Mr. Lukashenko spends a

week of his vacation in

the area every year. Alexander Lukashenko says that

the radiation level in

the disaster-stricken region is even lower than in

Belarus's capital, Minsk.

 

 

 

http://english.pravda.ru/main/18/90/360/15333_chernobyl.html