Russia: FDA food import refusals, 2020–2025
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Russia was the origin of 73 of 22,156 US food import refusals in 2020–2025 (0.3%), ranking 48th of 146 origins. 60% were hazard findings and 40% paperwork alone. 16% concerned vegetables and vegetable products; the most-cited safety charge was cyclamate, and the most-cited paperwork charge nutrition labeling.
Every US food import refusal naming Russia as origin, 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2025. A refusal is one import entry, however many product lines it carried. Download every table (CSV).
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By year
| Year | Refusals | Share of US total | Rank among origins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 13 | 0.5% | 35 |
| 2021 | 12 | 0.4% | 43 |
| 2022 | 16 | 0.5% | 35 |
| 2023 | 9 | 0.3% | 49 |
| 2024 | 5 | 0.1% | 59 |
| 2025 | 18 | 0.3% | 47 |
| 2020–2025 | 73 | 0.3% | 48 |
Year links open that year's refusals, entry by entry.
Tables below show each year 2020–2025; cells are shaded against their row's own peak. Change compares 2025 with 2020 and is shown only where 2020 had at least 10 refusals ("new" where it had none).
Hazard or paperwork
A refusal is a hazard finding when any of its charges is a safety one — filth, pathogens, residues, contaminants, unsafe additives — and paperwork when every charge is labelling, registration or a missing filing. One citing only charge codes FDA has not published is unclassified.
| Year | Hazard findings | Paperwork only | Unclassified | Hazard share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 69.2% |
| 2021 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 66.7% |
| 2022 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 75.0% |
| 2023 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 22.2% |
| 2024 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 40.0% |
| 2025 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 61.1% |
| 2020–2025 | 44 | 29 | 0 | 60.3% |
By industry
| FDA industry | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vegetables and Vegetable Products rates → Vegetables-other |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 12 (16.4%) | — |
| Snack Food Items (Flour, Meal, or Vegetable Base) | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 11 (15.1%) | — |
| Vitamins, Minerals, Proteins, and Unconventional Dietary Specialties for Humans | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 10 (13.7%) | — |
| Spices, Flavors, and Salts | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (9.6%) | — |
| Bakery Products, Doughs, Bakery Mixes, and Icings | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 (6.8%) | — |
| Dietary Conventional Foods and Meal Replacements | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 (6.8%) | — |
| Milk, Butter, and Dried Milk Products | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 (6.8%) | — |
| Candy Without Chocolate, Candy Specialties, and Chewing Gum | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 (5.5%) | — |
| Fishery/Seafood Products | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 (4.1%) | — |
| Fruit and Fruit Products | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 (4.1%) | — |
| Chocolate and Cocoa Products rates → Chocolate-cocoa |
0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 (2.7%) | — |
| Soft Drinks and Waters | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (2.7%) | — |
| Beverage Bases | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1.4%) | — |
| Cereal Preparations, Breakfast Foods | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1.4%) | — |
| Food Sweeteners (Nutritive) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 (1.4%) | — |
| Whole Grains, Milled Grain Products, and Starch | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1.4%) | — |
By charge group
A refusal citing charges in two groups counts once in each, so rows can add up to more than the total.
| Charge group | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labelling (paperwork) | 5 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 34 (46.6%) | — |
| Unsafe additives (hazard) | 1 | 3 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 20 (27.4%) | — |
| Process and registration (paperwork) | 1 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 15 (20.5%) | — |
| Pesticide residues (hazard) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 10 (13.7%) | — |
| Salmonella (hazard) | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 (12.3%) | — |
| Undeclared allergens (hazard) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (2.7%) | — |
| Filth and insanitary conditions (hazard) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (2.7%) | — |
| Listeria monocytogenes (hazard) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (2.7%) | — |
| Other pathogens (hazard) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1.4%) | — |
Most-cited charges
FDA's own charge codes, with a plain-English label. Each is counted once per refusal.
Safety charges
| Charge | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
cyclamate CYCLAMATE |
0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 11 | — |
pesticide residue PESTICIDE |
1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 10 | — |
Salmonella SALMONELLA |
5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | — |
unsafe color additive UNSAFE COL |
1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | — |
unsafe food additive UNSAFE ADD |
0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | — |
undeclared allergen ALLERGEN |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — |
Listeria monocytogenes LISTERIA |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — |
E. coli O157:H7 E COLI 157 |
0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | — |
filth FILTHY |
0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | — |
insanitary plant MFR INSAN |
0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | — |
Paperwork charges
| Charge | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
nutrition labeling NUTRIT LBL |
1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 17 | — |
not in English NO ENGLISH |
2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 16 | — |
ingredients not listed LIST INGRE |
1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 12 | — |
unapproved new drug UNAPPROVED |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 7 | — |
no process filing NO PROCESS |
1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — |
label not conspicuous INCONSPICU |
1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — |
labeling LABELING |
0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | — |
no common name USUAL NAME |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — |
false or misleading label FALSE |
1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | — |
no manufacturer name LACKS FIRM |
0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | — |
By month
Pooled across 2020–2025. Each row is shaded against its own peak, so its season shows whatever its size. Hazard findings peak in June; Paperwork only peak in September.
Hazard or paperwork
| Kind | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hazard findings | 3 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | June |
| Paperwork only | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | September |
By charge group
| Charge group | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labelling | 3 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | March |
| Unsafe additives | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | March |
| Process and registration | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | March |
| Pesticide residues | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | September |
| Salmonella | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | September |
Import divisions
The FDA division that handled the entry. DSWI and DNBI are the Mexican and Canadian land borders, so this says as much about the route as about the product.
| Division | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DNEI — Northeast | 8 | 3 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 37 | — |
| DSEI — Southeast | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 15 | — |
| DWCI — West Coast | 3 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 15 | — |
| DNBI — North Border, the Canadian land border | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | — |
| DSWI — Southwest, the Mexican land border | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | new |
Method
- Source: FDA Import Refusal Report (U.S. Food and Drug Administration); every food import refusal dated 2020–2025.
- Counts are import entries, not product lines. A refusal naming several origins counts once for each, so origin shares can add up to more than 100%. FDA records this origin as Russia and Russian Federation; both are counted here.
- Charge groups are this site's grouping of FDA's charge codes; a code belongs to the first group that claims it, the same rule as the hazard pages.
- A charge is what FDA cited to refuse the entry, often on appearance or documents rather than a laboratory result. Counts depend on how often each product is examined, so they are not a rate of unsafe food.
- Licence: CC-BY-4.0. Cite as "Russia: FDA food import refusals, 2020–2025", fruit-risk.com, 2026-09-20, https://fdair.fruit-risk.com/reports/russia.html.
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